Black Trigger
by Miraichaos
Summary: It was back. The thing that had taken nearly everything from Yuma four years ago had left its job unfinished, and it wouldn't stop until it completed its work. It would take out anyone and anything that got in the way. Yuma's friends want to protect him, but the last thing he would do is let someone die for him again. He will not let it happen again, even if it costs him his life.
1. ITS back

A/N: Another World Trigger fic that I randomly thought up. This one will be a multi-chapter that I will hopefully finishing writing while camping this week, and get uploaded after that. The fic I was planning on posting I manged to lose before finishing, so that's somewhere in my files. Anyway, I likely won't be able to write any up-to-date fics on anything past episode 39 of the anime. I have kindle, which I use for writing and watching World Trigger, but today it spontaneously updated and now it can't play any videos whatsoever. I'll try and fix it, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to and if I can't, I won't be able to get a replacement for a few months. Anyway, enjoy this fic, reviews are great, sorry it's short and if you have any idea how I can fix my kindle, tell me in the reviews because I'm about to throw it out a window.

Remember, I don't own World Trigger and if someone is OOC, make sure to tell me :)

* * *

"That was good guys. You two did great against those two teams," Osamu said, praising his teammates. They had just easily defeated two teams in the B-Rank , winning their first two matches despite lacking their leader.

"Those people weren't very good. Their strategies were easy to get around," Yuma pointed out. Chika nodded, causing Osamu to smile.

"I'm glad you guys did good," he told them. But Osamu's smile suddenly disappeared, changing into a look of terror as he jumped a foot in the air when a hand landed on his shoulder. He turned to see Jin smiling down at them.

"That was good you two. Those others squads didn't stand a chance. Also, you sounded pretty confident Four-Eyes. It's nice to see that you have faith in your teammates," the brunette said. Osamu rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Well I know Kuga has a lot of experience when it comes to fighting, and Chika has a lot of Trion as well as good aim. Plus they're both a lot stronger than me. There was no way they would lose," the raven haired teen explained. Chika and Yuma smiled at their leader, then turned to watch the final announcements for the next battle.

While Jin, Osamu and Chika were focused on the screen, Yuma found himself distracted. He got an odd feeling, like he was being watched, but he just couldn't shake it. He found himself glancing around, but no one seemed to be looking at him in particular, not with an Elite agent such as Jin in their presence.

A few minutes later, as Yuma was watching the screen in front of everyone, he caught a glimpse of fire-like purple in the corner of his eye. He whipped his head to the side, squinting as he tried to make out a shape, but all he saw was purple. It was familiar and unsettling, but he just couldn't place it. Not until a black figure moved into view. It was floating in the middle of the fire, hidden behind a wall, but it just barely stuck out from it's hiding place. It seemed to be staring at Yuma, as he felt it's gaze burning holes into his own eyes. Wait. EYES. He suddenly remembered why the purple flame-like substance was so familiar.

"N-no..." Yuma breathed. He felt his knees go weak, before completely buckling underneath him. He felt his body hit the floor but the pain didn't register. He heard voices but they were muffled, as if he was underwater. It felt like he was underwater. His grasp on reality was slipping through his fingers like sand as he stared at that spot, that spot where IT had been. It was gone now, but it had no doubt been there. It was no hallucination.

Yuma didn't react to the muffled voices or feel himself get shaken as his friends hovered over his unresponsive body.

All he could see was that mysterious purple flame.

All he could feel was burning pain in his arm, leg, side and eye.

All hear was the silence of death.

All he could smell was the metallic stench of blood, his own blood.

Somehow, he managed to get out two words before the world around his completely faded into the dark water that was drowning him in fear.

"It's here."


	2. The chaos is only just beginning

A/N: Heeeey. So sorry about the extremely late updating. I was camping at the county fair all week and I ended up having a lot less free time then I thought I'd have, so I didn't get to write a chapter all week. Then when I did have time on the last day, someone hit my camper with a golf cart and knocked it off the jacks holding it up so I couldn't get my kindle. After that I had to walk a lamb. I know, so many excuses, sorry. Anyways here's a chapter now. Sorry if its rushed or OOC I just wanted to get one up as soon as I could. I hope I can update more frequently, at least Ill try. **Just a sside note, the story takes place when Chika and Yuma are B-Rank, just after their first fight in the B-Rank Wars.** If there was anything else I wanted to say in this note, I forgot what I was so enjoy the chapter I guess, sorry it's another short one. If anyone is OOC make sure to say something, I'm just going by how I think the characters hold react.

* * *

Osamu, Chika and Jin all spun around at the sound on a body hitting the floor. As soon as they saw Yuma laying on the floor, his eyes wide with fear, they jumped into action. Chika sat behind Yuma, propping his head up on her lap. Jin was attempting to get Yuma to speak, talking to him but getting no response. Osamu shook his friend's arm lightly with one hand, taking a pulse with his other. It was fast and erratic. In that moment, Osamu realized that Yuma Kuga, the invincible Yuma Kuga, was afraid and panicking.

"It's here," Yuma said out of the blue before going totally limp, passing out. Osamu was confused, not knowing if it was possible for Yuma to pass out since he body was fake. If he had passed out, then it must have been possible.

"Yuma!" Jin called, his voice full of worry. Even Jin, who was normally laid back about everything was starting to lose it. Then again, it WAS Yuma who was passed out on the floor.

Around the group, the other agents in the room were beginning to whisper to each other. None of them knew what had happened. All they knew was that the tough little shrimp no one could beat was randomly unconscious for some reason.

"What's going on here?" Kido asked, speedily walking into the room. He had been working in his office when he was informed that Yuma collapsed. He knew that someone like the son of Yugo Kuga wouldn't just collapse unless there was something very serious going on. He would never admit it out loud, but he was a little worried. When his eyes landed on Yuma, confirming what he'd heard about the teen being completely out of it, Kido wanted answers. He glared at the three agents kneeling around the Neighbor on the floor, not even blinking. Osamu and Chika both looked slightly unnerved and intimidated, while Jin looked pissed off. It wasn't a 'mildly angry' look, but more of a 'you take one step closer and I will decapitate you' look. It was obvious that despite having just met Yuma not long ago, Jin was very protective of him. Then again, he had called Yuma his 'cute little junior' before.

"We don't know what's going on sir. Yuma just collapsed and started shaking. He said "It's here" then passed out," Osamu said, his voice unwavering. The slight fear he had felt before from Kido's intimidating glare had completely disappeared, replaced by the need to make sure Kido wouldn't try anything. Osamu didn't think he would ever fully trust Kido, especially not with Yuma, a Neighbor.

"He's completely out now. I think we'll just take him to Tamakoma. After that freak out, I doubt he'd want to wake up to a ton of Border agents staring at him in the infirmary," Jin said, his cool demeanor back. His face was calm, but his eyes still held a slight wariness. He wasn't good at changing him emotional gear quickly, but he could pretend if he needed.

Kido watched as Chika and Osamu stood up, waiting for Jin who was getting Yuma. The brunette slipped an arm behind Yuma's shoulders and under his knees before picking him up with ease. It made sense, since Yuma was in his 11 year old body. For Jin, who was 19, it couldn't have been very hard to pick him up. The three Tamakoma agents walked away from the Commander, leaving him behind with the rest of the confused agents. No one had any clue what was going on. Even worse, no one had seen the mysterious figure floating in purple flames.

* * *

A/N: Just so you know im always taking prompts if anyone has any. Any prompts I've gotten thus far I've noted and will hopefully write in the future. Thanks


	3. Jin

A/N: A new chapter is up, this one is pretty Jin-centric, and the next one will be more about the entirety of Tamakoma Branch. I plan on posting once a week since school starts for me in about two weeks. I realize this story is likely really crappy and OOC but I'm trying. I have to do a reading assignment for an incredibly boring book, so wish me luck. R&R, always accepting prompts, sorry for mistakes/OOCness. Also, just wanted know how you guys would feel about another one-shot I've been working on here and there. Basically Jin discovers his precognition at a young age and when he starts talking about things before they happen, he becomes a bit of an outcast, which is why he's now so nice to people. Idk if that sounds I interesting yo any one I'll think about posting it. Anyways try to enjoy the new chapter

* * *

When Jin, Osamu and Chika reached Tamakoma, they were surprised to find that everyone was there. Oddly enough, the entire branch had the day off, and had decided to spend it relaxing at the Headquarters. Of course that peace was disturbed when the four agents who'd been at the B-Rank wars came in, an unconscious Yuma Kuga laying in Jin's arms.

"Hey guys, it took you long eno-" Konami started to complain, but she abruptly silenced when she saw Yuma. Her face morphed into confusion.

"Huh? What happened to Yuma? Did he get hit hard during the fight?" she asked, slightly concerned. Everyone was concerned. As far as they knew, Yuma didn't even sleep. Those who hasn't witnessed the scene at HQ were even more confused.

"Yuma-kun collapsed randomly after we finished our fight. We were watching them finish up another round and suddenly there was the sound of someone hitting the ground. We all turned around and saw him on the floor. He was shaking and he looked really scared," Chika explained. Her voice was quiet and she looked worried. Osamu looked at her in surprise. He hasn't expected her to speak up, given that she was timid and very bothered by what was happening. The combination made him think she wouldn't say a word.

"Kido was going to have him sent to the infirmary but no one at HQ trusts Neighbors, and we thought it would be smart to take him here instead. You never know what those at HQ might do. I'm sure there's people who hate Neighbors more than Miwa there. If they wanted to, they could probably kill him while he's out like this," Jin added, shuffling Yuma in his arms slightly so his head was better supported to take the strain off his neck.

"Why don't you take him to his room? It's probably good that he moved in here. It makes this easier," Takumi said. He looked a little worried himself. The situation with Yuma was already causing every one to act slightly out of character.

Jin nodded and headed for the stairs. Yuma had moved to Tamakoma shortly after joining Border. He didn't have many belongings and he was alone in his apartment. After losing Replica, Yuma had no one he could have talked to had he stayed by himself. He would have been truly alone night after night when he wasn't with his friends and comrades. Being alone that much wouldn't be healthy for anyone.

When Jin reached Yuma's room, he was able to easily open the door and walk in, a perk of carrying a small person. Yuma's room was plain. A made bed sat pushed into the corner furthers from the door, a nightstand next to it. The wardrobe was on the wall opposite the bed, holding a dozen shirts, sweatshirts and pants. Other than that, the room was basically empty. Yuma really didn't have much.

Jin didn't observe the room much as he made his way to the bed in the corner. He peeled the blankets back with one hand and carefully set Yuma down. It wasn't likely he would wake up if Jin wasn't careful, but he couldn't help it. It was the first time Jin had seen Yuma unconscious, whether it be sleeping, an injury or something else. Despite the panic that had gotten him where he was, Yuma looked peaceful. His eyes were closed, partially covered by his poofy white hair. It was a complete 180 from not even half an hour ago when he had collapsed.

Unable to restrain himself, Jin reached forward and brushed Yuma's hair off his face so his closed eyes were no longer covered. He wondered why he did it, and came to the conclusion that Yuma looked too much like a young child, almost like the little brother Jin never had. Osamu and Chika were also like younger siblings to him, and he was sure he would have done the same thing had it been either of them.

With a small sigh, Jin pulled the blankets neatly over Yuma, just to his shoulders. He then took a step back and took a momemt to think. Nothing really seemed off about the young Neighbor that he could tell. He even used his Side Effect, but for some reason he saw nothing. Not nothing as in Yuma had no future, but nothing as in he couldn't even see the furture. It bugged him, and a feeling of unease that he couldn't shake settled in Jin's gut.

"What's going on with you Yuma?" he muttered quietly before walking out of the room. There was always the chance that the whole ordeal could be nothing, but the way Yuma had been, saying 'It's here' was proof enough that SOMETHING had to be wrong. Jin hated that he didn't know. Usually when bad things were happening, he didn't like seeing all the different possibilities. But now that he couldn't see anything, now that he didn't know anything, he had no way to control the outcome. That bugged him. Being able to have some control on the outcome of a situation is what kept Jin sane as he used his Side Effect. He loved pulling strings and making things favorable for him and his friends. When he couldn't do that, he didn't know what to do.

As Jin reached the bottom of the stairs, he wiped all the evidence of his darkening train of thoughts from his expression, instead putting on one that was meant to reassure people that everything would be okay.


	4. What the hell is going on

A/N: Heeey. I realize this update is a day late, but when I went to post yesterday I just kept getting a message by the servers were down. Anyway, I finally got on. Sorry for any OOCness, typos and crappy writing. My updates will likely be about 7 hours later than I planned on starting next week because school, but I'll do my best to make sure I don't update late again. Alright, enough of my lame excuses. R&R, I'm always open to prompts, and any prompts I've gotten so far I have looked at and for the most part started writing. Enjoy the story.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned World Trigger, but I don't...

* * *

The conscious Tamakoma agents were gathered in the living area, thinking.

"If this were anyone else, we'd be overreacting. But the fact that Yuma just passed out on you guys is a little creepy, given that I've never even seen him sleep before. He's never even seemed tired," Konami stated. The others nodded in agreement.

"We just need to figure out what's going on. I guess we could ask Yuma when he wakes up. Or maybe you saw his future, Jin? Any hints?" Osamu asked. The Elite agent shook his head and sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"No. Actually, my Side Effect doesn't seem to be working whenever I try it on Yuma. I just see nothing, as if I didn't even have the ability so see the future. That's what's bugging me the most. First Yuma goes completely out of character, then my Side Effect won't work on him," he explained. Osamu nodded, analyzing possibilities.

Osamu couldn't really think of anything that could be causing the situation. He was close to Yuma, and had been the Neighbor's first friend once he came to Japan. He cared deeply for the other boy, considering him his best friend, almost like a short twin brother who was good at everything. Osamu was always proud of Yuma and no matter what he never felt even the tiniest twinge of jealously toward the Neighbor. He knew Yuma had a paid a heavy price as he gained his abilities, one Osamu hadn't even come close to paying. Though he got a bit closer during the second invasion.

"Wait," Osamu said suddenly. While thinking about Yuma, he realized that he barely knew anything about the teen's past. He knew Yuma had "died" in a war, but was saved by his father. Unfortunately that was how he lost Yugo. He also knew that Yuma had done a lot of traveling, though other than that he was clueless.

"Maybe this has to do with Yuma's past. I don't know about any of you, but the only thing I really know about him from before he came to Japan was that he lost his father. I also know some of the details behind that and I know he did a lot of traveling, but that's it. Maybe Yuma saw something that reminded him of his past and brought up bad memories. It makes sense. Even the strongest people can completely break down when they are reminded of bad memories," the raven haired agent explained. Next to him, Chika nodded.

"I think you're right, Osamu-kun," she agreed. Chika would be lying if she said she wasn't worried. Yuma was an extremely strong individual, mentally, physically and emotionally. She looked up to him like he was an older brother, since he always took good care of her, just like Osamu and her actual brother. The fact that someone like him had been reduced to a quivering mess was shocking and even somewhat scary. If there was something out there that scared Yuma that bad, there was a possibility something equally as bad could come for her Trion. At least she knew her friends wouldn't just give her up, no matter how scary or strong the opponent.

"Actually, I think you're missing something, Osamu," Jin suddenly said, his eyes narrowed in concentration.

"Yuma explained some of his past himself and was unaffected, or at least he handled it well enough that he didn't give anything away. I don't think it was just a memory. I think he might have actually seen something that either was something from his past of looked very similar and he mistook it for something. Either way, we should probably all keep an eye on him," he said. Reiji looked around at everyone.

"So you think he's in danger?" Reiji asked. Jin's head snapped up.

"Actually, I was thinking he might do something and get himself hurt. I don't think he's in danger, but it's always a possibility for anyone," he mused out loud. The others all lowered their heads as they dropped deep into thought.

"I was thinking, what if this is all a false alarm? I know Yuma dropping like that was completely out of character for him, but maybe there's nothing really going on," Konami said, breaking her silence. Het face scrunched up slightly in focus. No one really had a response. When it came down to it, there were too many possibilities. Maybe they were reading too much into it, but after everything that'd happened to Yuma that they knew of, they knew there was almost no way to narrow down the possibilities.

Upstairs, the bed in Yuma's room creaked as the person laying on it woke up.


	5. Yuma

A/N: Heeey. I have some time, so I decided to post the next crap-tastic chapter before going to school. It's a shortie, again, I'm sorry. Anyway, I apologize in advance for typos, misspelling, OOCness and all that. I've been looking at chapters not yet animated, and may reference some things from those if I think it's relevant. I'm not sure what I'll be doing in school, but I still plan to continue Black Trigger, no matter what. Actually if everyone hates this, THEN I'll stop. All that aside, enjoy the chapter and expect a new one next week.

* * *

Yuma's eyes opened slowly. His mind was hazy, and he couldn't process anything. Why was he so sluggish? And why had he been unconscious? The last time Yuma had slept had been four years ago, before his 'death'. It was so long ago that the feeling he now had was completely foreign, like Japan still was.

Suddenly, in just an instant, it all came back to him. The B-Rank Wars finishing for the day, watching the end with Jin, Osamu and Chika. The odd feeling like he was being watched. The purple flames. The assassin from four years ago. He shot upright, hands gripping the blankets in tight fists. That thing, whoever or WHATEVER it was, had tracked him down. He never thought he'd see it again, let alone have it focused on him. He had no doubt. He had felt its gaze on him, burning through his skin and marking his bones. The worst part was that he couldn't think of why it had been looking at him.

No, that actually wasn't the worst part. The real worst part was that he'd completely lost it and broke down in front of a crowd of people. In front of Osamu, Chika and Jin. He had lost control of himself in a way that would make it impossible for him to lie out of the situation. He couldn't tell them it was nothing, they wouldn't believe him. At the same time, if he told them, they would get hurt. Yuma was especially worried about how Osamu would react. The raven haired teen was weak, but a sucker for those in need. If he thought Yuma's life was in danger, he would likely get himself killed trying to protect him.

Chika would probably feel bad and blame herself because she had a large amount of Trion that attracted Neighbors to her. At least she would stop after he explained that it wasn't after her, but it would be hard to explain how he knew it was after him without any evidence or any knowledge as to WHY he was being targeted. In this case, just having the feeling wasn't enough.

Jin had a tendency to get very protective over his kouhai, and Yuma knew that being the Elite agent's 'cute little junior', he would not be left alone. He had heard about what Jin had set up awhile ago when Kido sent agents to seize his Black Trigger and kill him. Not only would Jin want to keep him from dying, but his other friends in Border such as Konami, Reiji, Kyosuke, Midorikawa, Shiori, Arashiyama Squad and likely a few others would try to help him. If the Black Trigger was truly after him, it wouldn't hesitate to fight any of them. Yuma knew how powerful that Trigger was and how skilled the user was. None of them would stand much of a chance. He himself had fought it with a normal Trigger and the experience of someone who'd only ever fought their entire life, and he had lost easily. That being said, he has to make sure they stayed out of it at all costs.

Taking a deep breath, Yuma composed himself. There wasn't a snowball's chance in hell that he'd let himself pass out again. Once he was sure his face and eyes were blank and empty of all hints and tells, he pulled the blankets off of himself and swung his legs off his bed, planting them on the floor as he stood up. He stumbled slightly when he got to his feet, his legs half asleep. Shaking them awake, he headed for the door before taking the stairs one at time, dreading what he knew was coming. For the safety of everyone he knew, he had to stop them before they started. That was, if he could. Though even if he couldn't stop them, he still would have to. No matter what.


	6. Let's have a talk

A/N: Another chapter is up! I apologize in advance for any errors I missed, OOCness, bad plot, etc etc. Since school started I've found myself with no time to write. My math teacher thinks it's necessary to assign three pages of our textbooks a day as homework. That's also why this update is so late in the day. When I got home I had to do all my homework before posting or I'd forget. Anyway, my boring school problems don't matter, I'll always find a way to get a chapter up. This one is a longer, since I've been posting lots of shorties. Not much suspense this chapter, it's more of a building block. You can probably expect suspense from the next chapter though. Hope everyone likes it, but if you don't that's okay. Enjoy and I'll be back next week with another update.

* * *

When the stairs creaked out of the blue, everyone turned. Sure enough the white haired Neighbor they were all waiting for appeared in their line of vision, blinking away the last of the blur in his vision from his "nap".

"How'd you sleep, Shrimp?" Konami asked, using the nickname derived from Yuma's height. She had slightly annoyed glint in her eye. Despite that, she also looked a tad bit worried. In fact, everyone in the room looked even the slightest bit worried, even Reiji and Kyosuke. Some of them were tapping their fingers, and other had it on their faces. They were all worried about Yuma.

"I wouldn't exactly call that sleeping," Yuma said plainly, shaking his head nonchalantly and if he hadn't passed out just hours ago.

"I wouldn't exactly call your little episode at HQ nothing," Jin said, joining the conversation. Yuma glanced at his senpai. Jin had likely set up everything that had been said so far. He knew what Konami was going to say, and he predicted Yuma's response before coming up with a way to connect that to the episode in Border in order to get Yuma's attention. He had taken what Yuma said and used it to say the exact same thing back, but about something else.

Yuma felt something twinge in the back of his head. As much as he respected Jin, he knew that the Elite was good at getting on people's nerves when he needed to. He was doing a pretty good job at the moment.

Despite his slight annoyance at finding out his comrades were indeed trying to pry into his mind and find out what had happened, Yuma shrugged. He remained straight-faced, not willing to give anything away.

"Kuga, well as know that wasn't normal. We also all know about the situation with your Trion body and some of your past. If there is something wrong, you need to tell us. We could find a way to help you," Osamu added, cringing at how much he sounded like a therapist.

Yuma remained silent, choosing to fix his stare on the four-eyed teen in front of him. He didn't let it waver and he didn't blink, just letting his eyes burn holes into the other teen's eyes. Osamu himself held his own for awhile, not blinking over waver. Then Yuma made his own eyes glint with anger, and Osamu immediately looked away. Yuma was good at being intimidating. Once people looked past his small size and saw his real abilities and the look in his eyes, they were always stared down. Ever since Yugo died, no one had beat Yuma in an intimidation game.

"Yuma..." Jin said, his voice 101% serious. When Yuma heard the voice of his Elite, he pulled his attention from Osamu, instead fixing his intimidating stare on Jin, though he already knew it wouldn't work.

Jin raised and eyebrow at the stare he was receiving. It didn't faze him at all, being who he was, but he now understood why Osamu has suddenly stopped looking Yuma in the eye altogether.

"Glare all you want, Yuma, but it's not going to change anything. This conversation isn't over," Jin said sternly. He hated how much he was acting like that parent who had found out their kid got in trouble at school, but in the end that attitude was required. Yuma was hiding something, and when Yuma was hiding something, it was usually something important.

"It's probably just my real body. You guys said you knew about it, so I assumed you would realize that's all it was," Yuma finally said, breaking his silence. His words sounded like those of someone speaking the truth, which split Tamakoma in half. Shiori, Jin, Kyosuke, Rindo and Reiji weren't buying his story, while Chika, Osamu and Konami were. That wasn't favorable for Yuma. Chika and Osamu were too soft, so of course they'd believe him, even if Osamu was brilliant. Then Konami was just plain gullible.

"You aren't close to dying, are you?" Konami asked, her eyes on the floor. It was easy to tell she was a bit worried. While she'd never admit it, Yuma had grown on her. If he died, she didn't know how she'd react. Yuma shrugged.

"Maybe, maybe not. It doesnt really matter. The only problem would be that if I die soon, then I would be letting down Osamu and Chika by not getting them to A-Rank and on an away mission first. Either way, I'm just living on borrowed time, so I can't complain," he said.

Everyone in the room was almost digusted by how lightly Yuma was taking the fact that he was close to dying. He spoke about it as if he was talking about some barely decent sandwich that was almost gone.

"If it was just some thing with your real body, then why'd you say "it's here" before passing out?" Jin asked. He was at the point where he was going to get answers whether Yuma liked it or not. Even if this turned into an interrogation, it was better to have Yuma hate them then have the boy die because they weren't persistent enough.

"I can't remember anything after I fell," Yuma said, dismissing the question. Jin didn't look amused. His Side Effect wasn't working, but only on Yuma. The Neighbor kept dismissing and dodging their questions. He had passed out in the middle of Border HQ. Yuma seemed a little more tense, but it only showed in the way he stood, with slightly stiffer posture. None of that was right.

"What we're you thinking about before you passed out?" Jin asked. Yuma duckfaced.

"The teams in the B-Rank Wars that we'll be fighting," he said. Then, Yuma's duckface vanished.

"Jin-san, I already told you nothing was wrong. You don't need to get worked up," the Neighbor said, a little confusion on his face. It was as if Jin had just kicked a puppy purely to hurt the kid. Even so, Jin saw right through the act. Unfortunately, Osamu, Chika and Konami bought it.

"Maybe that's enough, Jin-san," Osamu said. While he knew Yuma was a master of deception, he also couldn't be completely sure Yuma was lying. As long as he wasn't sure, he would just watch from a distance.

Jin sighed, rubbing the back on his head.

"Alright. Just tell us if there's something wrong, Yuma. The last thing we need is for Tamakoma to lose the Tamakoma-2 ace AND a Black Trigger," he said. That ended the interrogation officially. There was nothing more anyone could do at the moment. Yuma wasn't going to talk, and if it continues, Chika, Osamu and the gullible Konami would likely all start to get agitated and think Jin was trying to be mean. What those three didn't realize was that Jin, Reiji, Shiori, Kyosuke and Rindo had all dealt with people hiding important things or even done it themselves many times over, and none of them were gullible. They knew there was something going on and they knew Yuma was lying.

"Chika, Osamu, I'll walk you guys home. It's late," Yuma said, making it obvious that he wasn't taking no for an answer. The two teens nodded, getting up and heading for the door. Mikumo Squad then left Tamakoma, both Osamu and Chika biding their comrades farewell. Yuma didn't say a word though, he didn't even wave over his shoulder. He was too busy thinking about how he was going to hide from people who could see right through him. Tamakoma had strong, smart agents, and it was obvious they wouldn't be easy to fool in the slightest, except Chika, Osamu and the ridiculously gullible Konami. Even worse, as soon as Osamu got solid proof, he would know Yuma was lying as well. That left the young Neighbor one option. He had to solve the problem before anyone figured him out.

Back at Tamakoma, it was silent for at least a minute after the youngest three agent left.

"He's lying," Kyosuke said plainly. All but Konami nodded.

"Are you sure? He sounded like he was sure it was nothing," she said. Reiji sighed.

"You believe everything people tell you, Konami," he pointed out. The strawberry blond froze, realizing she may have been tricked.

"I'm gonna kill that shrimp!" she growled.

"Something might beat you to it. He could die or be killed. After that conversation, I'm sure one of those two will be happening soon. Either he's almost dead and he doesn't want anyone to find out, or he's being hunted by something and he wants to keep us out of it. And actually, I don't blame you for getting fooled this time. Yuma's a damn good actor," Jin said, running a hand through his hair.

"It just bothers me that my Side Effect won't work on him, but it'll work on everyone else," he added. Rindo nodded and stood up.

"We'll all have to keep an eye on him. Border as an agency owes both Yuma and his father, Yugo. Both have played significant roles in the agencies growth. We owe it to them, and Mr. Replica, to keep Yuma safe. Now, this is an order. Monitor Yuma Kuga, but don't let him know. Just pay more attention to his words, actions, responses, what he does, where he goes, all of that. Also, keep it a secret from Yotaro. He's five, and he'll only made this harder," the man said. The rest of the agents nodded, accepting their mission. It would be a difficult one, given Yuma's powerful instincts, but they should be able to manage. They had to.

A few miles away, Yuma was back to Tamakoma. He'd already dropped off both Chika and Osamu at their houses. Yuma had his hands in his pockets and he was staring down at the pavement.

"This will definitely be one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do," he muttered under his breath. He was thinking about ways to rid his comrades of suspicion. It wasn't going to be easy at all.

Then, Yuma suddenly stopped. In the corner of his eye, he could see purple flames in the distance. He quickly whipped his head to the side, but saw nothing. No purple flames. Even so, he couldn't stop the shiver that went down his spine. The rest of his walk back to Tamakoma was the fastest he'd ever gotten back.


	7. The slow week

A/N: Another late in the day update, sorry about that. Also, I was planning on putting some suspense in this chapter, but when I rewrote the last one to make it longer, the story got put behind a little, so I had to whip up a filler to try to avoid plot holes. Even worse, the universe is out to get me. My internet kept crashing and today I got homework in every single class. I hope this chapter isn't too much of a disappointment, and sorry for any OOCness and errors in advance. Hopefully the story will get better with the chapter next week, that is if all goes according to plan. Anyway enough of my boring rants, R&R, enjoy the chapter and I'll be back with another next week :)

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Overall, the next week was uneventful. Yuma wasn't acting odd at all. No looking over his shoulder at random times, no sensitivity to his surroundings. He wasn't constantly watching everyone and everything. His eyes held no panic or fear. He was just being Yuma, which didn't help the other members of Tamakoma at all. After convincing Konami to keep quiet and not try and murder Yuma for deceiving them, they all began to keep and eye on Yuma, bar Osamu and Chika who were oblivious to the other agents new mission.

On the other hand, while Yuma seemed completely normal, Rindo could tell that the Neighbor was onto them. Yuma knew he was being watched, he expected it. He already knew it would be hard to get people like Kyosuke, Reiji, Jin, Shiori and Rindo off his back. Even if he managed to convince the former four, they'd still watch him if Rindo wasn't sure there was nothing going on. Even the pitifully gullible Konami was watching him, since Rindo had ordered it.

Due to that, Yuma pushed the thought of his late night sighting of the purple flamed assassin to the back of his mind. If he started thinking about it while in the company of others, they would find him out easily. He couldn't help but mull over the sighting when he was alone though. The assassin had been there late at night, watching him as he walked back to Tamakoma. It would have been most efficient for the assassin to have attacked Yuma then and there. It was likely the assassin would have won, Yuma knew that. He also knew that if there was any evidence left behind, such as if the seal holding his real body in his Trigger broke and freed it, the assassin would be able to dump everything in the river. Hell he could even leave Yuma's Black Trigger on Tamakoma's doorstep as a little 'present'.

This caused Yuma to realize what was going on. Yes the assassin was after him. Yes the assassin more than likely wanted him dead. Though there was a reason they had waited. However, Yuma couldn't figure out why. Were they afraid of being caught by Border? Or maybe they believed Yuma may actually stand a chance this time around. It seemed almost as if they were almost teasing him, wanting Yuma to know he was being hunted. Like they wanted to play a game of revenge. Yuma wasn't supposed to have lived, but he did. That no doubt angered the assassin, and now the being wanted to show Yuma that he wouldn't be able to get away. Not this time. It was like a game of cat and mouse, where the assassin was the cat and Yuma was the mouse, Border caught in the middle.

That couldn't be the case. Assassin's don't work that way. They aren't the type of predator to play with their food. An assassin goes in and gets the job done, plain and simple. It had to be one of the former two reasons, or maybe both. It was true that Yuma was no longer a rookie. He had a Black Trigger, and even without it, he could beat most members of Border in a fight. Then there was the fact that Border had a large number of agents, a good amount of them very skilled and experienced. It would make sense for the purple-flamed assassin to wait and observe. It didn't know how Border worked, and didn't know how good Yuma was. Watching and waiting was smart.

In the silence of his room in the middle of the night when every one was sleeping, Yuma whispered to himself.

"It looks like I'll just have to fight, even if I have a high chance of losing. It's better that I at least put an end to this before someone like Osamu gets caught up in it. At least Jin-san, Kyosuke-senpai, Reiji-senpai and Konami-senpai could likely at least hold their own and make an escape." The Neighbor sighed, though his lips twitched into the smallest of smiles.

"Great, Osamu's rubbing off on me," he said, rolling onto his side in bed, smile fading. This was a real problem, and he didn't have all the time in the world to deal with it.

Unable to sleep like always, Yuma closed his eyes and thought of his father and Replica. Silently in his mind they came up with different strategies for different situations.

What Yuma didn't know was that Kyosuke had just walked by his door, having gone to get a glass of water. He heard Yuma talking, and was thoroughly convinced that something was going on. The Neighbor's words were solid evidence. Heading back to his room, Kyosuke decided he would speak to Rindo in the morning.

Seperate from what was going on between the agents in Tamakoma, there was also confusion at HQ. Kido had stayed late in his office, watching a security clip on loop. He watched it over and over and over, analyzing everything. It was all off.

"What the hell happened with Kuga?" he muttered, rubbing his head. In the video, the boy had simply looked off somewhere before collapsing and passing out. It was so not-Yuma that it had caught Kido's attention. Or at least, it had been brought to his attention by a nervous looking C-Rank agent who looked up to Yuma.

After reviewing the video of Yuma, Kido had watched the video from the hallway the Neighbor had looked at. He didn't see anything in the video for awhile, then the camera went out for a minute before coming back to life. A blood vessel throbbed in the man's head.

"Damn cameras don't even work..." he muttered, dismissing the incident. The most important piece of footage was missing. There was no video that would show anyone what was in the hallway that Yuma had looked down, all because the camera was bad.

Suspicious of Yuma's actions as always, Kido pulled out his phone and dialed a number, waiting through a few rings before hearing a tired voice on the other end.

"Sir?"

"Tachikawa, I have something for you to do, starting in the morning. Watch Yuma Kuga. His actions are...suspicious. More suspicious then usual," Kido said, ignoring the fact that the agent on the other hand had more than likely been sleeping when he called. There was a sigh from Tachikawa, disappointed at the reason he had been woken up.

"Alright then," the agent said before hanging up. Kido narrowed his eyes slightly in annoyance. Even though Yuma was the son of a man who had been very close to him, Kido couldn't trust the Neighbor at all. Even though what had happened didn't seem to be related to planning an attack, nothing could be overlooked. He would just need to figure out what was going on.

Despite being deep in concentration, Kido took a second to look around when he felt the discomfort of eyes staring at him. He didn't see anything, and dismissed the feeling as the lack of sleep getting to him. He had looked up too late to see the figure observing him from the corner, dissolving into the shadows seconds before Kido's attention was caught.

Before leaving that night, Kido left himself a note on his tablet to have some of the cameras replaced. Faulty ones were no good. What Kido didn't take into account, was that faults weren't the only thing that affected camera footage.


	8. The calm before the storm

A/N: Hey guys. So this might not be the intense action chapter everyone was looking for, it's actually an expanded version of the original chapter 6. After rewriting to make the chapters longer, I ended up making the orginal chapter 6 into three seperate chapters. Thankfully though, everything it now back on track. I hope this chapter will be satisfying enough. Sorry if I missed any errors, I had three math tests today and I'm ready to sleep for 20 years. Anyway, I also apologize in advance for any OOCness or just crap writing in general. Enjoy the chapter and I'll be back next week :)

* * *

Just as he'd planned, the next morning Kyosuke was standing in Takumi Rindo's office, reporting what he'd heard. The glasses-clad man at the desk sighed, rubbing his head.

"So there is a problem, we know that for sure. Now we need to figure out what the problem is and put an end to it before something happens," Rindo said. Kyosuke nodded.

"Do you think it might have go do with the B-Rank Wars? Konami said Yuma has been training even harder than usual the past week, and he seems to be focusing more on the upcoming fights," he pointed out. Rindo raised an eyebrow. He hadn't thought of that. He had been thinking that the issue, whatever it was, would be an outside issue. He didn't recall it ever crossing his mind that someone in Border could be in some way threatening or endangering Yuma.

"In that case, Kido may need to be informed. I would like to keep him out of this, but if there's a possibility one of his agents is involved, we'll need him in the loop," Rindo decided, a small frown on his face.

It was common knowledge that Kido hated Neighbors more than anything else, and everyone at Tamakoma especially knew how much he hated Yuma. The man had ordered him dead three times. If Kido was included in their investigation, it was likely that he wouldn't lift a finger to stop his agents if they tried to hurt Yuma in some way. He might even encourage it. The only thing keeping Yuma safe other than his friends was the promise Kido made to Replica, who wasn't even on Earth anymore.

"Kido might not care," Kyosuke said, voicing Rindo's exact thoughts. The man nodded.

"Earlier, did you say Yuma mentioned most Tamakoma agents when he was talking to himself?" Rindo asked, adjusting his glasses. Kyosuke nodded.

"If we want Kido to take action, we could point out that one of his agents may be after Yuma, and possibility targeting other Border members. I know he isn't too buddy-buddy with every one here at Tamakoma, but we have your team. Konami, Reiji and you are considered Border's strongest team. We also have Jin, who is cunning and a talented fighter. His Side Effect makes him an important asset. I'm sure Kido wouldn't be too keen on Chika getting hurt either, since she has such powerful Trion. It also seems Mr. Kinuta has taken a liking to her," the Tamakoma director explained.

Kyosuke nodded, leaving the conversation at that. Rindo watched his agent leave before pulling out a cigarette. Things sure got hectic with a Neighbor around, the son of Yugo Kuga none the less.

"You sure left us with a handful, Yugo-san," he muttered.

In another part of the building, Yuma had just finished changing into clean clothes. He laced up his shoes and headed to the kitchen for breakfast.

In the hall, he noticed Kyosuke walk out of Rindo's office. Nonchalantly, the Neighbor continued walking. As he passed Rindo's office, he heard the man muttering.

"You sure left us with a handful, Yugo-san."

Yuma's steps faltered for a second, but he quickly covered it up and kept moving in case anyone was secretly watching, just like they always seemed to be lately. Yuma knew they were onto him. Judging by the fact that Kyosuke had just left the office, where Rindo was muttering about Yugo, Yuma was sure he had been overheard at some point. He was going to have to be exceptionally careful. He had already been walking on eggshells, though now he was running right for a cliff. It was only a matter of time.

The Neighbor decided that it would be best to completely throw himself into his training. That way, he could keep his mind off everything else. Besides, if something was going to happen to him, he needed to get Osamu and Chika ranked up as fast as possible. He was the ace of the squad, and even if he was replaced it was likely Mikumo Squad would fall down to the bottom. While Chika and Osamu weren't weak, they wouldn't do well with someone who lacked experience. Yuma was relied on for a lot of things in their fights, and without an experienced attacker, Osamu's plans would be worthless.

In the kitchen, Yuma was about to grab an apple when someone tapped his shoulder from behind. He turned around, wearing his signature duckface as he looked up at Shiori. She had a blue box with a cartoon tiger on it.

"Yuma-kun, want to try this cereal? I got it from America. They're frosted corn flakes," she said, shaking the box. Yuma looked at her in confusion.

"Who is America?" he asked, not understanding. He'd had normal cornflakes before, and frosted cornflakes sounded interesting, but he didn't trust this 'America' person. Shiori opened her mouth in an 'o', forgetting Yuma didn't know a ton about Earth.

"It another country on this plant, not a person. It's like Japan, but they have different food and they speak English instead of Japanese," she explained. Yuma's eyes widened.

"Oooh! THAT America. My dad told me a little about that place," he said, finally understanding. Shiori smiled and eagerly opened to box. She ended up pouring two bowls of the foreign cereal, and the two ate in the kitchen. It was really good.

"Thanks for letting me have some of your American cereal, Shiori-san," Yuma said before heading out of Tamakoma. Usually he met Osamu and Chika at the base, but since he had gotten up earlier than normal he decided to go get his friends from their houses. It worked out well, since he ran into Osamu just as the teen was leaving, and the two went to Chika's to get her before heading to HQ.

The three trained in the simulation rooms for a few hours before getting lunch and going to defense duty. They then went to Tamakoma, where they trained with Reiji, Kyosuke and Konami. Once the training was over, they were starving. Thankfully, Shiori had made dinner while the group trained, and it was ready to eat when they were done.

All of Tamakoma assembled around the dining room table. They were eating rice balls and curry. Everyone was quick to dig in, except Yuma, who had completely zoned out.

"Yuma-kun? Are you going to eat?" Chika asked, slightly concerned. Yuma wasn't one to let his food go cold. The Neighbor was pulled from his thoughts and his hand went to his stomach as it growled in protest.

"Oh yeah, I was just thinking about what I'll do in the next Rank War. Ko will probably be tough to beat, with his Side Effect," the Neighbor pointed out. Osamu nodded.

"I'm sure we'll figure it out," he said.

Across from Osamu, Konami swallowed a bite of rice and curry before speaking.

"Kuga, why is it you don't need sleep but you do need food? I find it odd that you only need one," she questioned. Every one looked at the Neighbor expectantly.

"I'm not entirely sure how that works myself, but Replica told me that my body functions just like a normal one. That means I do get hungry. The only huge difference is that I don't bleed. If I get hurt, whatever the injury is just fixes itself. That's because my body is powered by Trion from my Black Trigger. That's also why I don't need sleep," he explained. His senpai nodded, satisfied with the answer.

A few minutes later, Shiori changed the subject.

"I think we should do something tomorrow. Everyone's been really tense this past week," she said, edging dangerously close to the taboo subject of Yuma's odd behaviour. Noticing the sudden tension in the room, Kyosuke spoke up.

"There's a public swimming pool an hour away by train. We could go there for the day, since everyone's free," he suggested. Jin nodded in agreement.

"It's also not to far away, so if there's an issue we could get back quickly," he said. Rindo smiled.

"I think you're right, you kids can't keep hiding in those training rooms all day. Just make sure Jin doesn't spy on the girls' changing rooms," he said with a smirk. Jin huffed and crossed his arms.

"I would never let myself get caught!" he claimed. The next thing everyone knew, Jin was frowing and rubbing his head where he had been karate chopped by both Shiori and Konami. The two girls had flames in their eyes.

"You just try that, Jin. I'll bring my Trigger," Konami threatened. Everyone laughed at the Elite, who looked more than mildly concerned.

"I fear for my life. Thanks Rindo," he said somewhat sarcastically, holding his hands up defensively in case the girls tried to hit him again.

At the end of the table, Chika was laughing quietly as she finished her curry. Not wanting the food to dry on her plate and become tough to clean, the young teen took her dishes to the kitchen to rinse them.

The happy atmosphere in the dining room disintegrated seconds later at the sound of a glass dish shattering on the floor as Chika's scream pierced the air.


	9. A night of lies and terror

A/N: Hey! Sorry this update is so late in the daaaay, I feel so guilty. I had to go to the dentist after school and I got home two hours later than usual. Anyway, here's the chapter as promised. Sorry for OOCness, typos, errors, etc. If any of the story doesn't make sense, I'm sorry. My cat's been acting weird lately and she's old, so I'm keeping an eye on her as I write. I also have two math tests, two science tests and a history test this week, wish me luck. My stupid excuses don't matter though, so I'll be back next week with another chapter. Enjoy this one, sorry if it's bad :D

* * *

The entirety of Tamakoma was sprinting for the source of the terrified scream in seconds. Everyone crowded into the kitchen, scanning the area with confusion. Chika was staring ahead with her mouth open, silenced by fear. Around her was a sea of broken glass, her plate broken to tiny pieces along with her glass, which had thankfully been empty.

"Chika! What-!" Osamu began, wanting to know what was wrong. However, he cut of when he spotted an odd purple flame in the corner. His eyes locked on the figure inside the flames, fear turning his blood to ice. One by one, all the others noticed the being, their eyes widening, even if only a fraction. They all watched the hovering person- was it even a person? Yuma, who stood behind everyone, unable to see, finally moved somewhere that the had a clear view. The sight caused his hand to twitch as the sense of fear and impending doom filled him. He didn't let it show though. He couldn't be scared again.

"What...is that?" Konami said slowly, as if the words refused to come out. No one answered. Now one knew. Not one but Yuma. He couldn't tell them though, it was too dangerous. Even so, they could all be in danger, especially if showed up right in the middle of Tamakoma. Speaking off, Yuma began wondering how it had got in without setting off any alarms.

The figure in the flames didn't make a sound, it didn't even move. Even though no one could see its face, Yuma could feel eyes burning into his own. There was no doubt about it now. He wasn't hallucinating or imagining. His mind hadn't seen something that looked like assassin and turned him into a paranoid freak. The assassin was there, watching, waiting, planning, observing. Yuma almost wished it would just hurry and make its move already, but at the same time everyone else was there. They would probably get hurt. Osamu would probably die.

Then, without any movement or anything, the assassin disappeared. One second it was there, the next it was gone. Though despite the fact that there was no longer anything in the kitchen, no one moved. Everyone was still trying to process exactly what they'd seen.

Jin came back to his senses first.

"That looked like an assassin of some sort. With that ability to sneak in without tripping our alarm, then just disappearing... Definitely a Black Trigger assassin," he said, eyes half closed in a calm expression.

Reiji recovered next.

"You're probably right," he said.

"I'll contact Kido, he needs go know about this. Damn... I'm glad Yotaro was with Yosuke for today," Rindo said, taking a deep breath to calm himself..The others followed quickly, which made sense since they were seasoned Border agents. However, Chika and Osamu were much slower. Osamu was staring dumbly at the spot where the assassin had been, and Chika was shaking. Not only had she just seen something terrifying, she was also surrounded by shards of glass while wearing only socks. She had taken her shoes off earlier since they were dirty and she didn't want to make a mess in the base.

"Four-Eyes come on, back up before you step on glass and track it around," Jin said, walking up behind his kouhai. He put a hand on Osamu's shoulder, pulling the teen back gently. Osamu stumbled a little, then blinked out of his trace.

"What was that?" he asked, his eyes still wide. He hadn't heard Jin's words from before.

"We think it's a Black Trigger assassin," Jin repeated. Osamu looked at his senpai in disbelief, then his eyes widened impossibly more as a memory came to him. He looked over at Yuma, his face clearly displaying his question. Yuma shook his head, slowly and after slight delay to avoid suspicion. Osamu nodded, his eyes turning to the ground as his brain began to process everything.

Yuma felt a little bad at that point. He had just lied to Osamu like it was nothing, even though Osamu trusted him. The Japanese boy had made the connection between the Black Trigger assassin and Yuma's death. He'd figured it out. Yuma couldn't let them know though, not yet. He needed as much time as he could get to resolve the situation. Though if he didn't do it soon, everyone would eventually figure it out. Yotaro, Jin and Osamu scared him the most. They were all very intelligent and very likely to realize what was going on. Worse yet, none of them would hesitate to bring it to light once they knew it was true.

That's why he had to lie, to buy time. Yuma shook his head so Osamu would think that the thing that had just been in the kitchen wasn't after him. If he did, he'd get everyone involved, and Osamu himself would try to solve the problem. He was smart but weak and unskilled, as well as a sucker for those in need. He would die in less than a day.

Still surrounded by glass, Chika, who was confused and terrified out of her mind, didn't register Reiji's arm around her waist as he grabbed the counter to keep himself upright before leaning over the sea of glass to get her. His height was a good advantage, and since Chika was light, he was able to pick her up with one arm and lift her over the glass, setting her down where it was safe. Next to him, Shiori proceeded to sweep up the mess.

"Y-yuma-kun, have you ever seen that before?" Chika asked, looking at her friend. Yuma felt another pang of guilt. If he said he'd seen it, Chika may calm down. Though if she knew it was the thing that nearly killed him, she would just be worse off.

"No. I've never seen anything like it," he lied, putting a little confusion in his voice to sound more convincing. He pretended not to notice Jin's eyes on him.

"Hey, Chika-chan, Four-Eyes, let me walk you home tonight. Nothing will come after you if they see you with a talented Elite like me. Yuma, do you think you could help Rindo at all to put together a file for that thing?" Jin asked. Yuma nodded.

"I can try," he said. Jin nodded in response, then put a hand on Chika and Osamu's shoulders before walking his kouhai to the door. Yuma watched them go, and decided it was likely Jin knew what was going on. If he didn't think Yuma and the assassin were connected, he would've let the Neighbor walk Osamu and Chika home. However, if he thought they were connected, he'd think it was too dangerous. If the assassin targeted Yuma while he was walking with Osamu and Chika, all three of them could end up dead. Besides, Jin heard Yuma say he didn't know anything about the assassin, so if he wasn't suspicious, he wouldn't have asked Yuma to help Rindo put a file together.

"Keep them safe, Jin-san," Yuma muttered quietly so no one else could hear. He then headed into his boss' office to put together a file. More lies to end the day.


	10. Odd behaviour and a secret mission

A/N: New chapter is up! I had this moment of realization a few minutes after I got home today, since I forgot that it was Tuesday. Almost forgot to update. I'm really stupid sometimes. Anyway, what do you guys think of the "Fugitives from Another World" plot? It seems interesting to me, but I don't have an opinion yet really. That aside, sorry for any OOCness, errors, or just overall crappiness. Hope everyone likes the chapter and I'll be back next week with another.

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The next day, when Yuma spotted Chika and Osamu heading for Tamakoma from his vantage point on the roof, he could already tell they had processed last night's incident. They no longer looked shooken up, though Yuma doubted they were completely over it. There was no way anyone would be anything less then a little uneasy. A Black Trigger assassin had gotten into Tamakoma undetected. If it had done it once, it could do it again.

Yuma walked down from the roof, and met his team as they walked in. Shiori walked up to Chika and grabbed her by the cheeks. She stretched Chika's face, just as she had after Chika got shot during the Rank Wars.

"Chika-chan, you look so much better today. That must have been terrifying last night to see that thing when you were alone!" Shiori said, using the same sad tone as she had the last time she did this. Chika nodded.

"It was pretty scary, but I'm okay now," the girl said, looking at the other agents in the room. Osamu looked at his younger friend with a small smile. He was glad she felt safe, though he hated that if it came down to it, there was no way he'd be able to protect her. He noticed Yuma watching Chika with a small smile. At least Yuma could do it. Osamu had no doubt that Yuma could defeat the Black Trigger. That is, unless it was the assassin that had gotten Yuma into the situation he was in. Sure, Yuma was much more skilled, but it would be extremely unnerving if that thing was the one that ruined Yuma's life. It wasn't though. Yuma said it wasn't, and he had no reason to lie.

"Do any of you have defense duty today?" Jin asked, munching on some rice crackers. Shiori shot him a look that showed that she didn't approve of his breakfast choice.

"None of us do, unless they changed something. But we never heard anything, so I doubt it," Yuma said. Jin nodded, then looked to Chika. The girl didn't look like she was planning to take the day off.

"I'm going to be practicing my sniping, Jin-san," she said, noticing the older teen's eyes on her. Jin nodded approvingly. Osamu fished his Trigger out of his pocket and looked at it.

"I'm going to do some more training today. Yosuke-san said he'd fight with me today if I wanted, and Midorikawa said he was also up to it unless he Kuga or Jin-san showed up," the four-eyed boy explained. Jin sighed.

"Make sure you don't overwork yourself and pass out again," Jin said. Osamu nodded, though Jin's Side Effect told him Osamu wouldn't be paying attention to how much energy he had left. Jin decided he would go with Osamu to HQ, so no one else would have to deal with the fifteen year old when he passed out again.

"I was planning on training today, but instead I'm going to try to find anything that might be related to the Black Trigger from yesterday," Yuma said, still putting on his clueless act. He didn't miss the slightly suspicious look from Jin, but he showed no sign of noticing. Without another word, Yuma turned and walked out of Tamakoma, waving behind him.

"Is it just me, or has he been acting weirder since yesterday?" Kyosuke asked. Konami shrugged.

"Maybe the assassin reminds him of the one that attacked him when he was eleven. I don't blame him for being a little distant," she said. Jin looked at the door that Yuma had just gone through, narrowing his eyes. His Side Effect still wasn't working, but he was getting that hair-raising feeling he got whenever his Side Effect showed him something bad. He was convinced Yuma knew more then he was telling. Much more.

"Four-Eyes, are you going to HQ soon? I have to go to a short meeting with Kido-san, so I might be able to walk with you," Jin said, pulling himself from his thoughts. Osamu nodded, and the two headed for HQ. Chika watched them go with a small smile, not realizing she had forgotten about her plans to train until she noticed the small weight of her Trigger in her pocket.

"I'm going to go practice," Chika said, waving to her senpai as she headed for the shooting range. Kyosuke watched the girl go.

"I take back what I said earlier. Everyone is acting weirder," he said. No one replied, though Rindo did look at the teen. He had been thinking the same thing.

A few streets away, Kei Tachikawa stoo in civillian clothes, eyes on Tamakoma. When Yuma came out, he watched the boy pass then began to follow him. He kept himself at a good distance, knowing Yuma had strong detection skills and he would be found out if he got too close.

Tachikawa followed Yuma to the Forbidden Zone around HQ, where the Neighbor sat down on a piece of rubble. He stuck his right hand into his sweater pocket, digging around a little until his hand closed around something somewhat found. Yuma pulled the Mini-Replica out of his pocket and held it in his open palm. He then held his left hand up next to it, splaying out his fingers so that his Black Trigger was visible.

For the next ten minutes, Yuma looked back and forth between the Mini-Replica and his Black Trigger. Tachikawa didn't have a clue what the Neighbor was thinking, but at the moment it wasn't important. His job was surveillance, making sure Yuma wasn't planning anything. For the sake of Jin and every one else at Tamakoma, Tachikawa hoped the Neighbor was hiding something.

However, that hope disintegrated when Yuma's head rose sharply. His ruby red eyes fixed on something in the distance. Tachikawa followed the boy's line of vision, searching. At first he saw nothing, just broken down buildings in the Forbidden Zone. Then his eyes began to focus on the distant spot, and Tachikawa felt his blood turn to ice.

Flames. That's the only way he could describe it. There was a figure, one that couldn't possibly be human. It floated in purple flames, and it didn't move from its spot. Tachikawa got an odd feeling, as if the figure was staring at Yuma, though he couldn't tell. He couldn't see any eyes. Then, he suddenly went rigid as he felt a strange gaze on himself. He stared at the figure with slightly wide eyes, and it seemed to now be staring back. For the first time in years, Tachikawa felt intimidated, possibly even a little scared.

In an instant, the figure vanished. Tachikawa let out the breath he had been holding, and turned to leave.

"Did you think I wouldn't notice you there, Tachikawa-san? If so, you make up some weak lies."

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A/N: Just wanted to add in that I was thinking about writing some Halloween one-shots, since it is October. I'm not sure if I'll get around to doing it, but if anyone has any prompts for that or if you have a pairing you want to see in some Halloween-related situation, you can review or PM me. If anyone is interested in this, I'll do my best to get their prompts and pairings made into stories. If no one is interested, I might just do a little "introducing Yuma to Halloween" thing and leave it at that.


	11. A secret discovered in a brewing dilemma

A/N: Its Tuesday, which means t her update. Sorry my chapters are a little short, I can't set aside a specific time to write because I never know what my family is doing each day. Besides that, I made sure this chapter was a little longer than the others. Anyway, I hope everyone is happy with this chapter. I tried to show a little inner-dilemma for Yuma. One of the next chapters may include the assassin's thoughts and why it's waiting, not sure yet though. Sorry in advance for OOCness, typos, errors and overall crappiness. Enjoy the chapter~

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The immediate silence that followed was quiet enough that a person standing where the two attackers were in the Forbidden Zone could have heard Osamu hit the floor as he passed out in HQ from too much training again.

Tachikawa froze when he heard Yuma's voice. Slowly, the attacker turned around, his stormy gray eyes locking with ruby red ones. The man wiped any surprise and confusion off his face, making sure he looked serious.

"Kuga, I'm impressed. I was sure I wouldn't be noticed from this far away," he said, slowly beginning to walk toward the Neighbor.

"You weren't that far away, and you have a pretty high level of Trion."

Yuma had noticed him, and probably realized he was spying. The boy definitely wouldn't let anything slip anytime soon, even if he thought he was alone. Tachikawa's best bet was to dive in headfirst and just ask questions.

"Do you mind telling me who that was? That person you were just staring at?" Tachikawa asked, staring Yuma dead in the eye. Yuma stared back, a completely innocent look on his face.

"Your guess is as good as mine," he replied. Tachikawa's eyes narrowed. He wished he had Yuma's Lie Detector, since he knew Yuma wasn't going to be completely honest. Kido had noticed during the week that Kyosuke, Reiji, Rindo and Jin had been watching the boy closely, suspicious glints in their trained eyes. From the looks of it, they didn't think Yuma was being entirely truthful about something either. The fact that Tachikawa had just seen Yuma looking at something that was clearly not human and likely from the Neighborhood made it seem that he was planning something. That was extremely bad, since last thing they needed right now was war against Yuma. He could likely take out half of Border with his Black Trigger, and Tachikawa knew about Jin's warning regarding getting on the Neighbor's bad side. Not to mention the fact that Border had lost enough of the people's faith in the second invasion. A betrayal would ruin the organization.

"Does that mean you aren't working with that person?" Tachikawa asked, not at all hiding his suspicion. Yuma shook his head, causing the man in front of him to sigh internally. If Yuma was telling the truth, he was back to square one. If Yuma was lying, he had no way to know. The best he could do was report to Kido and hope more information would be uncovered.

"Alright then," Tachikawa said, turning away from Yuma. He started walking for the base, effectively ending the conversation. The longer he stayed, the harder it would be to get something useful, and the more likely he'd end up answering questions. Yuma knew he was being watch from all sides, and if he was anything like Tachikawa expected, he'd want to know everything Border had on him in order to further evade proving their suspicions.

Yuma watched the man go, his innocent expression remaining until Tachikawa had long since disappeared into the HQ building. That's when he dropped the act, holding his hands up again as he looked at his Black Trigger and the Mini-Replica once more.

"What should I do now, Replica? Obviously that assassin won't leave until I'm dead, and the longer this takes, the more other people will get involved. I can't let Border find out what that thing wants, but Osamu already made the connection. He trusts me enough to believe my lie, but the second he brings it up in front of someone like Jin-san or Kido-san, this'll be out of my hands. Should I just try to fight the Black Trigger even though I probably can't win, or do I get help from Border and assure I'll win, thus involving more people and risking casualties? Kido-san might even decide I'm a traitor or try to send me back to Neighborhood. If that happens, I can't help Chika and Osamu," Yuma muttered to the small black figure in his right hand.

"I do not make that decision, you do, Yuma." Yuma swore he heard Replica's voice, though he knew better than to believe his ears. Replica was deactivated, lying around somewhere in Aftokrator. The multi-purpose Trion Soldier wouldn't speak again unless he was reactivated, and it was unlikely that someone in Aftokrator would reactivate him.

The young Neighbor sighed, placing the Mini-Replica back in his pocket.

"Sometimes I don't like making the decisions, Replica. We both know.i don't always make the right ones," Yuma said quietly, standing up. He glanced at HQ, where Osamu and Chika were training. He could go there and continue to uphold his clueless act until his secret was inevitably figured out, or he could do something and possibly get himself killed. Before joining Border and teaming up with Osamu and Chika, the choice would have been easy. He would've just left Japan and returned to Neighborhood. He got himself into the situation, so he had to get himself out. However, now he had the responsibility of getting Chika and Osamu to A-Rank and on an away mission. He couldn't do that if he left and was labeled a traitor by Border. He also couldn't do it if he was dead.

 _'I also can't do it if one of them dies,'_ he thought. That made the decision even harder.

Undecided, Yuma began walking toward the city. He didn't have a clue about what he should do, but his time was running out. Actually, he had an odd feeling that it was already out.

In HQ, Tachikawa stood outside of his boss' office. He waited, and when the door opened, he walked in. Kido was typing something on his tablet.

"Kido-san," Tachikawa greeted. The older man looked up from his tablet, pausing in his typing. Recognizing the attacker in front of him, he pushed away the tablet and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms with an expectant look on his face.

"What did you find?" he asked. Tachikawa hesitated for a moment. As important as it was that he report to Kido what he'd seen, he knew his words would likely endanger Yuma. Kido may instantly think without a doubt the Neighbor was trying to betray them, and Tachikawa would feel bad if Jin lost his kouhai at his fault. There was also the fact that Jin had given up Fujin to get Yuma into Border, so Tachikawa would feel just a little guilty if he made that end up being for nothing. There was also the fact that the older attacker had no ill feelings for Yuma. Even so, the safety of the people of Mikado City and Border came first

"I followed Yuma Kuga to the Forbidden Zone from Tamakoma. He was alone, and he spent about ten minutes just staring at his Black Trigger and the small version of his Trion Soldier that he had with him during the second invasion. There was nothing abnormal until he suddenly looked up. I followed his line of vision and saw something definitely not from Earth. I assume it was a Humanoid Neighbor, no doubt armed with a Black Trigger. It seemed to be staring at Kuga, but I can't be sure. The Humanoid Neighbor didn't have any features. It was more like a black silhouette shrouded in purple flames. A non-human appearance, much like Amo in Black Trigger form," Tachikawa explained. Kido's forehead creased slightly.

"Is Yuma Kuga planning to betray us?" the man asked, not beating around the bush. Tachikawa shrugged.

"I can't be sure. Neither of them talked, and I was about to leave after the odd Humanoid Neighbor disappeared, but it seems that Kuga noticed I was there, and he knew that I had been following him. I spoke with him, and he didn't admit to knowing anything about what or who the Humanoid Neighbor was," the twenty year old explained. Kido nodded and sighed.

"This is not the first appearance of that Humanoid Neighbor. Rindo contacted me last night and informed me of an odd being that looked to be a black silhouette shrouded in purple flames, the same as what you described. It bypassed all his security systems, not setting off a single alarm. It appeared in the kitchen area of the Tamakoma base, and was discovered by agent Chika Amatori, who didn't even sense it with her Side Effect. Yuma Kuga claimed to have no idea about what the being was. However, it's suspicious that it has appeared around him more than once. The likelihood of a coincidence in slim. Rindo also informed me that Jin's Side Effect is for some reason not working on Yuma," he explained. Tachikawa's eyebrows went up. That probably explained why Jin seemed somewhat irritable the past week.

"Can we assume that the two are linked?" Tachikawa asked. Kido stared his agent dead in the eye.

"It's very possible," he said. Tachikawa stared, his expression clearly asking for more information.

"Rindo told me that Jin believes the being is a Black Trigger assassin. Not too long ago this morning, agent Osamu Mikumo passed out from overexertion, again. I had been nearby speaking to Miwa. Before passing out, Mikumo asked Jin if the being they had seen last night "looked similar to the thing that Yuma spoke about when recounting his near-death," Kido quoted.

"An assassin attacked Yuma Kuga four years ago, and the attack resulted in Yugo Kuga's death. Jin looked suspicious when Mikumo brought the topic up, though I didn't have time to confront him. These factors tell me that Yuma Kuga and this Humanoid Neighbor may be linked, though not in the way we would have thought. Yuma may not be teaming up with the other Humanoid Neighbor," Kido revealed. Tachikawa's eyes widened slightly when the pieces fell into place in his mind.

"You really think..?" he asked. Kido nodded before stating his prediction

"It's possible that Yuma Kuga is very well aware of the Humanoid Neighbor's power and purpose, and that he is trying to keep us, Border, out of the situation. It's possible that he is being hunted by the same thing that attacked him before, four years ago."


	12. Yuma's low-key protective side is proof

A/N: New chapter. This one is a little short, and I'm sorry if it's boring. Anyway, I'm sorry it's a little later in the day. I planned on updating when I got home from school but there was an issue on a bus that had too many people and not enough room, so I got home late. That aside, sorry for any OOCness, crap writing, errors, etc. I'll try to make sure the next chapter is a little longer, though that will depend on how I do on Science test this week. (Anyone else think schools have too many tests?) I'll be back next week with another chapter, so enjoy.

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Tachikawa composed himself quickly, pushing aside his surprise at his boss' words like the professional he was.

"Should we notify Rindo? Tell him Yuma may he in danger?" the attacker asked. Kido shook his head.

"No. For now, no part of this conversation leaves the room. I'm just making a guess and giving Yuma the benefit of the doubt, since he hasn't acted against us in the past. His assistance in the previous invasion also gained him some trust. Plus, the last thing I need right now is for Tamakoma branch to get distracted," the man said. Tachikawa nodded.

"Should we at least tell Mikumo? He seems to already know," the young man pointed out. Kido nodded.

"True, but he's too close to Yuma, and Side Effect or not, Yuma would know if Mikumo was lying about something. If Mikumo knows, Yuma will know. Besides, Mikumo blindly trusts Yuma, and as long as Yuma says he doesn't know it is, Mikumo will believe him. Also, Mikumo may act rashly if he discovers the truth. If Yuma really is being hunted and he's keeping quiet like this, there is the possibility he's trying to keep others out of it so they aren't harmed. We both saw how Yuma acted after Mikumo nearly died in the second invasion. He might be trying to protect his team, since neither Mikumo or Amatori have the skills to defeat that assassin," he explained. Tachikawa looked confused.

"Kido-san, how would you know how powerful the assassin is?" he questioned. Kido rubbed his forehead.

"Your mentor, Shinoda, you know his strength. He's the strongest White Trigger user in Border. Four years ago when Yugo died, it was related to that assassin. I don't know the details, but if that thing fought Yugo and won, there's no way anyone in Border could beat it. Maybe Amo, since they seem to have similar Triggers, but even that isn't for sure. All we know is that we are facing a dangerous enemy, and should proceed with caution," the man said. Tachikawa nodded.

"Come to think of it, Jin probably already knows what's going on. Should we get him involved?" Tachikawa recommended. Kido gave the agent a look that said he had come to the same realization.

"I'm sure he does know, especially after hearing what Mikumo said. While Jin trusts Yuma, he is also well aware of the fact that Yuma is protective of those close to him. He knows that Yuma wouldn't hesitate to lie if it meant keeping Osamu and Chika out of unnecessary danger. Jin himself has done plenty of the sort in the past. As far as I know, he's been protective of them for awhile. When I sent Miwa Squad after Yuma, back when we didn't know who he was, Mikumo apparently planned to step in and assist Yuma. Yuma, however, kept him out of it. Sure he didn't need help and he knew it, but help would have no doubt made things easier for him. My point is, Jin trusts Yuma, but not blindly. He won't believe every word that comes out of Yuma's mouth, and we both know that he doesn't sit back and watch when Yuma's life is in danger," Kido explained, reminding the twenty year old in front of him of an old mission.

Tachikawa cringed slightly at the memories of the failed Black Trigger retrieval mission. It had been a complete failure, all thanks to Jin.

"That is also why I don't believe we should tell him about our theory," Kido said. Tachikawa looked at his boss with a puzzled expression.

"Jin will no doubt do some investigating. He'll probably watch around, use his Side Effect on whoever he can. He'll work behind the scenes like he always does, setting things up to go his way. However, he may wait on putting his plans into action, since he likely knows taking on a Black Trigger is dangerous. He'll want some sort of confirmation before he does something like that. That's why if he finds out that we believe Yuma is in danger, he'll likely go for an offensive approach rather than a defensive one. We don't want that. If the assassin is after Yuma, we don't need Jin getting himself killed too. His Side Effect isn't working right, and that could cause him to walk right into a trap. Jin is a powerful asset, and despite how lying he is, I don't want to see him die," Kido clarified. Tachikawa nodded in understanding.

"Let's just hope you're right about Mikumo believing Yuma, or this'll go downhill fast," he said. Unfortunately, luck isn't always on Border's side.

That night, Osamu had Yuma walk Chika home. Osamu wanted to finish up some strategies for the next Rank War at Tamakoma, so he was hard at work on the computer. However, only a few minutes after Yuma and Chika left, Osamu got a monstrous headache. The teen rubbed his forehead and took a break, heading up to the roof to think.

'Is Kuga really safe? He never shows any fear on his face when he talks about that assassin, but does that mean he recognizes it an is suppressing his reaction?' The thoughts swirled through Osamu's head.

"You're worried about Yuma, aren't you, Four-Eyes?" said a familiar voice behind Osamu. The teen jumped and turned to see Jin walking up to him. Somehow, the moonlight made new features on Jin's face show. Dark circles under his eyes, which were a little sunken looking. His usual smile had turned to a forced-looking upturn of the lips. Obviously he had been pretty stressed out lately. It was something Osamu never thought he'd see on Jin, then again, the future had to be far more than stressful. All the foreseeing he was likely doing now that they had a powerful enemy lurking was no doubt catching up with him.

"Of course I'm not worried, Kuga can take care of himself fine," Osamu said, tearing his eyes away from Jin's stress-marked face. The latter sighed and crouched down on the roof next to Osamu.

"Earlier you said the assassin that showed up here reminded you a lot of the one Yuma told us about when recounting his near-death. Do you think it the same assassin?" Jin questioned.

"Yuma said it wasn't, but the similarities are strong. Then there's the fact that he never really reacts when he sees or hears about it. You'd think that something new like that would get some sort of reaction out of him. I just wonder if maybe he's suppressing his reactions to make us think he doesn't recognize the assassin. It's like when telling a lie. You have to keep a straight face or everyone knows you're lying," Osamu explained. "Still, I'm sure I'm just imagining things. Yuma wouldn't lie about something this important," he added. Jin nodded.

"You really trust Yuma, that's good. He seems to really trust you too, and Chika. He's also always been pretty protective of you guys. You three have come along well as a team," Jin pointed out, standing up. He clapped Osamu lightly on the shoulder and said something quietly before heading for the stairs.

That night, after walking home, Osamu couldn't sleep. Jin's words from earlier were on loop in his head.

'He's lost a lot, and I'm sure he wouldn't hesitate to lie if it meant protecting someone he is close to.'

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A/N: If anyone has any prompts they want to see done, I'd love to hear. I know I never got around to this before, but I'm going to have an extra day and a half off school next week I think, so I might be able to write a few things then.


	13. Jin's having an issue

A/N: This chapter was a bit longer, which I'm very glad about. I wrote it at 2am Sunday morning, since I actually ended up being busy for the Halloween weekend and of course after being busy it's impossible to sleep. I hope all of you had a good Halloween, or at least a nice weekend if Halloween isn't your thing. Anyway, I was thinking about maybe doing a bit of the assassin's point of view in the next chapter. Just a little explanation as to why it had decided to stalk instead of attacking. I kind of want to get that out there before I forget and never put anything about it in the story, leaving everyone confused. That aside, sorry for OOCness, typos, errors and overall crappiness. R&R and enjoy the chapter. I'll be back next week with another chapter.

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The next morning, when Chika met up with Osamu on their walk to Tamakoma, she noticed that the older boy looked tired. Osamu was dragging his feet slightly, his eyelids drooped, his eyes were bloodshot and his hair was a little messy. His light skin was paler than usual. The way he looked was very not-Osamu.

"Osamu-kun, do you feel ill?" Chika asked, slightly concerned for her friend. He looked completely exhausted, even though they had actually left Tamakoma at a decent time the night before. There would have been plenty of time to sleep. That meant Osamu could be sick or stressed out, which under the circumstances was very possible.

Osamu blinked after a moment of unresponsivness, Chika's words slowly registering in his hazy mind. He felt like he hadn't slept a wink the night before, though in reality he had slept restlessly for at least a few hours. Jin's words had unnerved him in a strange way. They had been very truthful, though the statement had seemed to be somewhat of an accusation directed at Yuma. Osamu had been unable to sleep as he pondered their meaning. Did Jin think Yuma was lying about his knowledge of the Black Trigger assassin? Or maybe Jin was trying to tell him that Yuma was in some sort of danger and he was lying or keeping quiet to keep anyone from worrying. Was his body nearing complete deterioration? Was Yuma linked to the assassin? Was it after him because he's a Neighbor?

"Osamu-kun?" Chika said unquestioningly, pulling Osamu from his confusing thoughts again. They had stopped walking, and Chika was staring up at Osanu with worried violet eyes. Her hand was on his arm, having previously been shaking it gently in attempts of pulling Osamu out of his mind. Osamu felt kind of bad that she was getting worried about him, since there was already enough for her to worry about. To remedy that, Osamu put on a small smile.

"I'm fine. I was just up a little late last night working on strategies. Even with everything going on, we still have the B-Rank Wars. Our next match is in just a few days, you know," he said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. Chika nodded. Their match kept getting delayed, and no one was sure why. Osamu was sure it had something to do with the assassin.

"You look really tired. Maybe you should lay down for a little bit at Tamakoma? I'm sure Karasuma-senpai wouldn't mind if you got a little rest before starting your training today," Chika recommended. Osamu nodded, then resumed walking.

"We'll see. Speaking of training, how are you doing with Reiji-san?" he asked, trying to steer the conversation in a more normal direction. Chika smiled.

"Reiji-san says I've gotten much better from lots of practicing. My accuracy using Ibis has gotten much better. During joint sniper practice, someone at HQ recommended I try using other guns. Reiji said maybe he'll have me try using Lightning soon, since I have lots of Trion that can make up for its weakness. I have to finish up what I'm doing with my Ibis right now first, though," she explained. Osamu nodded, a smile on his face. He was very proud of how far Chika had come since joining Border, and he was sure she would end up being one of the top snipers in Border. That is, if she was ever able to actually shoot a person.

The two completed the rest of their walk to Tamakoma in a comfortable silence, their untrained instincts blind to what was near them. Even Chika's Side Effect didn't pick anything up. That was okay though, because they weren't in any actual danger. Yet.

Across town, at Border HQ, Yuichi Jin strolled down the hallways. His Side Effect, which had recently been getting less and less accurate as time went on, showing him less and less, told him that Kido and Tachikawa would be having a conversation near Kido's office in two minutes. Jin was only a minute away, so he had no doubt that he would make it there in time. However, he didn't count on the thing he didn't foresee.

"Tch!" The sound escape Jin's mouth as his head suddenly throbbed. He stopped walking and leaned against the wall, rubbing the sides of his head in attempts of calming the waves of pain going through his skull. That had recently started as well. Just a few days ago, Jin started having headaches. At first, he wasn't exactly sure what it was, thinking maybe he was just tired, but then he realized he had brought it upon himself. He had spent a lot of time watching Yuma, trying to force his Side Effect to work. He had grown so accustomed to using it that without it, he felt that a piece of himself was missing. As horrible as his Side Effect could be sometimes, showing him horrible deaths of his comrades, it was what allowed him to keep people from dying by getting them out of a situation before it even started. Now that it wasn't working right, he couldn't foresee a single thing related to Yuma. It bugged him, it bugged him a lot. The stress had been building, accumulating more are more as more questions arose.

That is what caused the headaches. All the strain he was putting on his mind by trying to force his Side Effect, coupled with the stress of wondering what the hell that assassin wanted and not knowing if the odd-acting Yuma was in danger, had all caught up with him. He'd seen the night before that Osamu had noticed his stress when they talked on the roof. It had been clear in the younger teen's eyes. Then of course, there was also the fact that Jin couldn't stop thinking if maybe telling Osamu about Yuma's willingness to lie in order to keep other people out of danger was actually a good idea. It was likely that had just added more stress to the crushing pile Osamu was already always stuck under, with all the strain he put on himself as he tried to get better at fighting. Jin had done it not just because he thought maybe Osamu should know, but also because if someone as close to Yuma as Osamu started doubting the Neighbor, that would be confirmation for Jin's theory. His theory that Yuma was the target of this mysterious assassin.

Jin's headache lasted longer then he would have preffered. It grew from a thob to a pounding headache before it began to grow weaker. When the headache finally disappeared, allowing Jin to stand on his own and continue walking, almost two minutes had passed. He wouldn't be able to make it in time to hear even the tail end of the conversation. His Side Effect told him that if he tried to catch at least part of their conversation, he would be seen. Jin had heard from Yuma that Tachikawa had been following the Neighbor the previous day. The fact that Tachikawa was having secret meetings with Kido now, meant that they were likely investigating the assassin and Yuma, thinking they were plotting together, and they wanted to keep their thoughts private. Otherwise, more people would be involved. That being said, if Jin was caught eavesdropping, it could cause trouble.

Feeling a bit defeated, Jin turned around and headed for the more crowded parts of HQ. The feeling of impending doom that had been tickling his mind was growing stronger, but he didn't know anything. The feeling of helplessness he'd felt during the invasion when he knew Osamu was possibly going to die and there was nothing Jin could do about began to build up in the Elite agent. Now though, it was worse than before, because at least during the invasion, Jin had been pulling the strings. He'd set things up in his favor, and he had known that there was the possibility that Osamu would emerge alive. Now though, now he didn't know. Sure Jin has taken on a strong Black Trigger user by himself with the standard issue Scorpion and Escudo, but this Black Trigger was different. It was an assassin with only one objective and a Trigger that Jin was sure could at least rival Amo's, if not overpower the teen. Now, Jin's sixth sense had been blinded, leaving him unable to see an outcome. He didn't know how to set things up now so that the resolution of this situation would at least be favorable. For the first time in his life, Jin truly felt like a normal human being. He felt almost useless and helpless, and he hated it. After all, how could he do anything if he couldn't even beat the top attacker in Border, let alone a Black Trigger who could probably beat Shinoda?

When Osamu and Chika reached Tamakoma, they weren't surprise to see everyone in the living area eating breakfast. Everyone but Jin, that is. The Elite agent was missing, but it wasn't very surprising. After all, with everything that was going on, Kido probably had him working overtime with his Side Effect.

"Hey, Osamu, Chika," Yuma greeted from where he sat on the couch. He had a foreign food Osamu recognized as 'Pop Tarts' in his hands, the strawberry ones that Shiori had bought off the internet for everyone to try. "You guys should try these, they're good," the Neighbor claimed, gesturing to the pastry in his hand. Osamu nodded.

"Where's Jin-san?" he asked. Rindo, who had been staring at the TV, turned toward Osamu with raised eyebrows. He hadn't even noticed the agents come in, since he'd been paying attention to what was on the TV screen. They were watching the news, searching for anything related to the mysterious Black Trigger assassin that may have occurred near civillians.

"Jin? He said something about talking to Kido. I guess he was going to talk about the Black Trigger we're dealing with, maybe come up with a plan," Rindo explained. Osamu nodded, his gaze shifting to the ground. He had wanted to talk to Jin more, curious about just what the older teen had meant when he whispered in Osamu's ear the night before.

"Osamu? Are you okay? You look like you've been thinking a lot," Yuma pointed out, as observant as ever. Osamu shook his head, then told the half truth, enough to get past the Neighbor's Side Effect.

"It's nothing, Kuga. I'm just tired."

It seemed that lately, everyone was telling more and more lies. On top of that, all the agents in Tamakoma were so caught up in using laser-focus to look for the small details in the news for information that they were completely oblivious to the thing watching them from outside, right in front of their faces.


	14. The games begin

A/N: Tuesday already? The weeks always seem to pass faster and faster. Anyway, I got another longer chapter here. I'm put a little bit of assassin POV in to make it interesting, I hope you guys don't think that was a bad call. Anyway, this chapter is mostly the assassin, then conversation between Jin and Rindo. I feel like the way Jin acts makes him seem a lot older than he actually is, and he probably talks to people like Rindo, Kido and Shinoda a lot. Anyway, sorry for any OOCness, errors and crappy writing. Enjoy the story :)

* * *

The assassin was just outside Tamakoma, watching, waiting, observing. It wasn't quite sure why it was doing this. There had been plenty of opportunities to take out the target, Yuma Kuga. However, the assassin waited. Why, that was a question with many different answers. At first, the plan had been to go to Japan, find Yuma Kuga, and kill him. Simple. He had been the one that was attacked in Calvaria, the one who was supposed to be dead. Yuma had survived though, and that left an ugly stain on a pristine record. The assassin had failed to dispose of a simple child, a rookie. Of course rookies weren't the type that the assassin had been after. That was just the type it had happened to come across. The assassin should have made sure he was dead four years ago, instead of leaving before the job was completely done. Or at the very least it could have taken care of the stupid kid already. It hadn't though, why?

The timing never seemed great. Whenever there was a time that Kuga was alone, the boy was on edge, alert. He'd be hard to sneak up on. Also, he wasn't alone for long. If Kuga was killed, his absense would be known quickly. That means the assassin would have an extremely small window to get out of Japan before being drowned in Border's rage.

Border. That was another problem. The assassin didn't know how strong the group was, and didn't feel like testing their strength. If Border attacked, the assassin wasn't sure it would win, just because of their sheer numbers. To lose to a bunch of puny teenagers would be a disgrace, another stain for the record. Maybe even death.

Then there was Kuga himself. The assassin hadn't yet seen the boy use his Black Trigger, not in years. There was no way to tell how strong Kuga was with the Black Trigger. He could be weak, or he could be incredibly strong.

It would be difficult to find a favorable time to attack the young Neighbor. The best thing to do would be to draw Kuga out, get the boy to attack first. That way, the assassin could make the conditions favorable for themself. Kuga wasn't stupid though. He knew when he was fighting a losing battle. However, his time in Japan had changed him. Kuga would keep fighting a losing battle in order to protect those he was close to. He had lost everything he'd had before, and it was just human nature to want to keep the same thing from happening again, not wanting to feel the same guilt as before. That is why the assassin waited. It had to know what it was up against before acting, and had to make sure the fight went the right way.

The assassin turned away from the window and disappeared. It'd heard of a young man who could see the future. The assassin's Black Trigger could affect the brain signals involved in Side Effects, but that wouldn't be enough. The Side Effect needed to be out of commission completely, or someone other than the assassin would definitely end up pulling the strings.

Jin returned to Tamakoma late. He felt that he was getting back later and later each night, and in reality he was. After his failed attempt at eavesdropping on his rival and the head of Border, Jin had wandered around HQ for hours. He mulled over everything his Side Effect told him, looking for connections between Yuma and anything. He was really grasping at straws. It was almost pathetic.

With the use of his Side Effect came more heachaches, but Jin didn't care. The bad feeling that had been building up in the bottom of his chest was growing exponentially, consuming him like a flame. Something was going to happen soon, but he didn't know what it was, or who it would happen to.

At his return to Tamakoma for the night, Jin found Rindo sitting by himself in the living area, staring at the TV. The news was on, and Rindo had his eyes glued to the screen as if he was playing 'Where's Waldo?' However, the man also looked like he was about to fall asleep at any second.

"Rindo-san?" Jin said, approaching his boss to give the man a light shake. Rindo blinked a few times, then looked up at his subordinate.

"Oh, Jin, you're here. Did you have a lot of business at HQ today? It's late to just be getting back," he said. Jin put on a smile and nodded, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah. Kido-san is keeping me busy. What has everyone else been doing? I noticed that the B-Rank Wars were delayed again," the Elite pointed out, turning the topic away from himself. Rindo sighed.

"They were. Mikumo-kun wasn't very happy, but he accepted it. He's training even more to get better. I just hope he doesn't overwork himself again," the man explained. Jin chuckled.

"That's Four-Eyes," he said. Rindo let out a light snort of laughter.

"Chika-chan and Yuma-kun didn't really mind the delay. Chika's been training, but she's clearly a bit distracted with all that's going on. Yuma's been training as well, but he's tense. To be honest, they wouldn't fight well if the Rank Wars hadn't been delayed again. The teams at HQ don't even know what we're dealing with over here. It looks like Kido's kept it pretty quiet," Rindo explained, his amusement fading. Jin nodded in agreement.

"It's for the better. If too many people are involved, things would get messy. There's also the fact that not everyone can handle information well. If all of Border knew, the entire public would know too. That's the last thing we'd want," the brunette added. Rindo sighed, then got to his feet.

"I'm going to bed. It's late, and the paperwork has really been stacking up lately," he said, patting Jin on the shoulder.

"You do look like you need a few extra hours, Rindo-san," Jin commented. Rindo nodded, pulling his hand off Jin's shoulder before turning to the stairs. Before he reached them, he stopped.

"Make sure you get some sleep too, Jin. Mikumo-kun was asking me if you are ill. He said you looked a bit worn out, and he's right," the man pointed out. He then went up the stairs to his room without another word. Jin sighed, and followed a few minutes later. He didn't even bother to change into more comfortable clothes, simply pulling off his boots before crawling into bed. The Elite agents eyes went to the window, locking on the moon for some reason.

"Four-Eyes, huh…" he muttered softly. Thinking of the younger teen made the bad feeling in Jin's chest grow, though he was asleep before he could figure it out.

The next morning when Jin woke, he went through his normal routine. He put on fresh clothes, brushed his teeth, combed his hair and went downstairs. He then headed to the kitchen for some leftovers from the previous night. Konami was supposed to cook breakfast, since there wasn't a ton of leftovers, but she had defense duty early in the morning with Kyosuke and Reiji.

When Jin looked in the fridge, his eyes landed on the curry. It's not that he didn't like curry, but for some reason it just didn't seem appetizing. The Elite agent shut the fridge with a sigh, though his sigh was cut short when a wave of pain stronger than the one the previous day washed over his brain. Jin leaned against the fridge, clenching his teeth and sqeezing his eyes shut against the pain. Yotaro was still sleeping, Shiori was working in the combat room with Tamakoma-1 and Rindo was in his office doing Director work. The last thing Jin wanted was to alarm everyone by making too much noise.

Images forced their way through Jin's head as a mysterious voice whispered the future directly to his mind. It was all over quickly, but it probabaly would have been better if the images had just continue. It would have been much better than the tense sinking feeling in his gut as he put everything together.

Ignoring the remnants of his headache, which still throbbed in the back of his skull, Jin made his way quickly to his boss' office. Maybe his Side Effect was wrong. It had been messing up lately. Then again, it could be right, and he couldnt be chancey in a situation like this one.

Jin didn't even bother to knock when he entered Rindo's office. The man at the desk looked up in surprise, not expecting someone to just barge in. Though when he saw Jin's grim face, his surprise disappeared, replaced by his professional blank expression.

"What is it this time?" Rindo asked, catching on to the fact that Jin had seen something bad with his Side Effect without much of a hint. Jin himself narrowed his eyes.

"Four-Eyes. It's going after him," he said. Rindo's eyebrows went up in shock. He would have never expected that Osamu would be a target for any other-dimensional being. Even so, the man grabbed his phone and dialed his subordinate's number. After four rings, it went to voice mail. The two in the office shared a look, before Rindo dialed a different number.

"Reiji? It's Rindo. I need you to check on Mikumo-kun…He should be by his house," Rindo said before pausing to look up at Jin, who nodded. "Yeah, just see what's taking him so long, he left his scarf here and I want to make sure he gets it before I forget about it…Thanks," the Tamakoma Director lied before hanging up, not wanting to alarm the agent. If something was wrong, Reiji was good enough to immediately jump into action. The office was silent as the two in it waited for a response.

In another part of town near Tamakoma, but a bit far from Border HQ where Tamakoma-1 was stationed, Osamu Mikumo walked out of his house. He checked his phone but saw no messages. Maybe Chika and Yuma hadn't gotten to Tamakoma yet, either. Osamu had woken up late, so he told his teammates to head over without him, saying he'd catch up later.

Yuma... Osamu had spent another night thinking about his friend. With each minute he thought about how Yuma and this assassin's actions were connected, the more he doubted the words the young white haired Neighbor had said to him. If Yuma had lied, Osamu didn't think he'd be mad, especially after what Jin had said.

"If that thing is really after Kuga, I'll protect him. He's protected me enough, everyone has. Now I need to carry my own weight," Osamu muttered with determination, looking down at the phone he still held in his hand. The background was a picture Shiori had taken of Tamakoma-2 shortly after their first B-Rank. Osamu had started walking slower as he pondered his thoughts, so he decided to pick up the pace. However, an odd feeling made him stop. The hair on the back of Osamu's neck stood up as he heard a sound similar to a growl, but also different, much different. It was a sound he couldn't explain. The only way he could think to describe it was mysterious.

Slowly, Osamu turned toward a darker alley-way type area between two houses. Purple flames came into view, followed by a black silhouette body with a few red lines on it, similar to Yuma in his Black Trigger suit. Osamu's eyes widened and his body froze as his mind made a connection to a memory from not long ago. The teen didn't register the sound of his phone falling from his grip, clattering to the ground just before it started to ring. He didn't hear anything except the mysterious, haunting sound coming from the being in front of him.

As the figure lunged forward, Osamu couldn't even make a sound


	15. The boiling point

A/N: Don't you just love Tuesdays? I don't like the school part of Tuesday but that's about it. Anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter. I made it a longer one again, and I hope to make sure the rest of the chapters in this fic are around this length, though I can't make any promises since I never know what I'm going to be doing each week. That aside, sorry for any typos, errors, OOCness and overall crappy writing. Enjoy the chapter and I'll be back next week with another one :)

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Reiji jumped from rooftop to rooftop on his way to his junior's house. He didn't like the idea of leaving his post just to check up on someone, but given the current situation, he decided it would be best. Plus, while Rindo had said Osamu had forgotten his scarf at Tamakoma, Reiji knew for a fact that then teen had been wearing it when he left. There was something going on. Besides, Kyosuke and Konami could handle the Forbidden Zone fine by themselves for a few minutes.

As Reiji neared Osamu's house, the red haired man dropped to the ground and started walking. He would run, but he didn't want to alarm anyone who might see him. If a civilian saw a Border agent with an activated Trigger running down the street, they may panic. After all, the Second Invasion and Rad issues hadn't been long ago. The last thing he needed was to make people think Gates would be opening in the city again.

When the man reached Osamu's house, he saw no one. That left him with two options. Go knock on the door to see if Osamu was there and get his mother worried if he was not, or go back to defense duty under the assumption that Osamu was on his way to Tamakoma. The agent weighed his options, though he never made his decision. The glint of sunlight on metal caught him eye, and Reiji walked over to the source in confusion. He bent down and picked up a phone that he recognized as Osamu's. Why was Osamu's phone just laying out on the ground? Did he drop it?

Suddenly, the hair on the back of Reiji's neck stood up. The agent was wary of something evil nearby, lurking and waiting. With his Trigger held tightly in his fist, Reiji spun toward a dark alleyway between two houses. There was no threat. Instead, there was something much worse.

Osamu lay face down on the ground, his limbs sprawled out around him. He wasn't moving, and Reiji couldn't tell from where he was standing if the teen was breathing or not. Reiji's eyebrows flew up, his eyes widening a fraction. The agent sprinted toward the teen on the ground, kneeling down next to him.

"Mikumo-kun!" he hissed, quiet but stern. He didn't want to alarm anyone nearby with any yelling. Osamu didn't respond. Reiji rolled the boy onto his back carefully and quickly, then put a hand on Osamu's chest. He felt a steady heartbeat. Osamu was alive.

"Mikumo-kun, wake up," Reiji ordered quietly, shaking the teen lightly. Osamu could be injured, so he didn't want to be too rough and accidentally hurt the boy. Reiji shook Osamu once more, then stopped when the teen's face scrunched up slightly. Osamu cracked his eyes open, blinking once or twice. His leaf green eyes stared at Reiji in confusion.

"Reiji..senpai?" he asked in confusion. Osamu seemed to be barely conscious, his tired eyes not opening more than a fraction. Reiji slapped Osamu's cheek lightly to try to wake the teen up, but only succeeded in causing him to wince. Then, Osamu blinked a few times before his eyes shut again, not opening back up. His head lolled to the side. Reiji dug around his pocket for his phone before remembering that the battery was low. He didn't want to use it in case something came up. Kyosuke and Konami wouldn't know how to reach him if his phone died. Slightly frustrated, the man opened Osamu's phone and called his boss.

"Oh, Mikumo-kun, did you g-" Rindo began, only to be cut off.

"Rindo-san, it's Reiji. I found Mikumo-kun. His phone was laying on the sidewalk, and he was unconscious in an alley between two houses. He woke up, but only for a few seconds. He wasn't totally conscious either. Someone, or something, attacked him," Reiji reported grimly. Normally, interrupting his superiors wasn't something Reiji would do, but now seemed like a time when that kind of thing was necessary. There was a moment of silence on the other end.

"Jin told me he foresaw that just before I called you... Bring Mikumo-kun to Tamakoma. I'll have Kido send an agent from the infirmary over to check on him. Once your done, get Chika and walk her here," Rindo ordered, speaking in the tone he used when someone was annoying him or making him angry and he had to stay professional. With a 'yes sir', Reiji hung up. He stuffed Osamu's phone into his pocket before looking down at the teen in front of him. Sighing, Reiji put one arm under Osamu's shoulders and the other under his knees before lifting the boy up. Osamu was pretty tall, though he wasn't too heavy or awkward to carry since Reiji was a pretty big guy. The red-haired Border agent jumped up onto the roof of the nearest house and ran for Tamakoma, attempting to avoid as many eyes as possible.

Half an hour later, Yuma ran into Reiji and Chika on his way to Tamakoma. He instantly noticed that Reiji had a small frown on his face while Chika looked very upset.

"Chika, why are you upset?" Yuma asked, not beating around the bush. Chika looked over at him, violet eyes landing on red ones. She quickly averted her gaze to the ground.

"Something happened to Osamu-kun...," she said simply. Yuma stopped walking, his eyes widening. A theory instantly formed in his mind, and he was sure it was the same as what had actually happened. The Neighbor quickly recovered from his surprise though, and he began walking before Chika and Reiji asked any questions.

When the three reached Tamakoma, Yuma and Chika ran inside. There was no one downstairs, so they ran upstairs and noticed that the door to one of the extra rooms was open. They found Rindo, Jin and Tachikawa standing around the room's bed talking to a young woman who carried a black bag. When Rindo noticed the two teens who had just entered the room, he thanked the woman, who nodded before heading for the door.

Yuma and Chika walked up to the bed. Osamu lay completely still on the soft surface, bar the slight rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. There was a bandage on his cheek, as well as one wrapped around his head. The Tamakoma-2 captain also had his left wrist wrapped up, and likely had other injuries that were covered by his clothes and the light blue blanket that had been spread over him. His glasses were folded up neatly on the nightstand next to his bed, and the lack of them on his face made him look oddly like Kyosuke.

"I ran into Kuga-kun on the way here with Amatori-chan," Reiji told his boss as he walked into the room behind Yuma and Chika. Rindo nodded.

"Thank you for getting Chika-chan here safely. You can go back to defense duty now, if you'd like. Just make sure you stay safe, Reiji," Rindo thanked, sending the red haired agent on his way. Reiji nodded and left without a word.

"Is Osamu-kun okay?" Chika asked, breaking the short silence that had settled over her. She looked up at Jin and Rindo. Rindo sighed.

"He got a little beat up. His worst injury is a minor sprain in his wrist. He seems to have gotten hit pretty hard in the head, but thanfully no concussion. His ribs were also a little bruised, but nothing that won't be okay in a day or two. He'll be just fine, thankfully," the man explained. Chika nodded. Yuma, on the other hand, was staring at the ground. His bangs hid his eyes from sight, and despite his small size, the vibe he was currently giving off made him intimidating.

"The assassin did this, didn't it," he accused, saying it more like a statement than a question. His voice had taken on the seemingly emotionless low tone he used when he got mad. This time, Tachikawa gave a response.

"Kido looked into it, and we can't be sure, but the residual Trigger energy is one not in Borders records. Since we don't have a confirmed reading from another area where the assassin's Trigger was used offensively, we can't tell if it was the assassin," the young man reported, though he seemed to be talking more to the whole group rather than just Yuma.

The white haired Neighbor went completely still for a second, then he suddenly turned toward the door.

"Don't, Yuma."

The familiar voice of Yuichi Jin, who had been strangely quiet throughout the whole ordeal, rang clearly through the room. Yuma stopped, but he didn't turn around.

"If it was the assassin, then attacking Four-Eyes was a way to lure us out. The assassin wants us to be angry, to draw us out to the place with favorable conditions to take out who ever it's after. You know that," Jin continued. Yuma sighed and turned around, his face clear of emotion.

"You always know what others are thinking, don't you," he said, once again stating his questions more as statements. His 'angry Yuma' tone had for the most part disappeared, now taking on more of a serious tone. Jin shook his head, his expression the same as Yuma's.

"I know what you and that assassin are thinking because I think the same way. I want to fight this assassin so it will leave my kouhai alone, though I know that this is bait because I do the same thing, just in a different way," he explained. Yuma locked his ruby red eyes on Jin's icy blue ones, and the two stared at each other for a moment before abruptly ending their silent conversation.

"If you're all good here, I have to go report to Kido-san," Tachikawa suddenly said, heading for the door. Everyone watched him go before turning their attention back to Osamu. Things were getting worse.

When Tachikawa got back to HQ, he headed straight for Kido's office. The man was waiting, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed.

"It happened, just like we thought. With that energy signature...even Jin is sure that this was the assassins way of luring its target out. Yuma was about to take the bait, but Jin stopped him. Yuma isn't stupid, but he knows that he's the target, and I have no doubt that should something like this happen again, he'll act. He won't let the assassin hurt his team again," Tachikawa reported. Kido nodded.

"Will Mikumo-kun be targeted again?" he asked. Tachikawa shrugged.

"It's possible, though Chika Amatori is also a possible target. It's no secret that Yuma cares about her, and wants to protect her. She may be a bigger target, since the assassin will expect us to guard Mikumo-kun more," he explained. Kido sighed.

"We need to continue keeping tabs on this. Also, I think this recent attack is evidence that I need to have a meeting with Shinoda, Rindo, you and Jin. That will be in four days, which should be enough time for Rindo to sort out Mikumo-kun. For the next few days, neither your squad or any Tamakoma agents will have defense duty. Keep a close on Yuma, make sure he doesn't get himself killed. If we're somehow wrong about the assassin just wanting Yuma, then we can't afford to lose a skilled agent. That's it for now," he finished. Tachikawa nodded, then left his boss' office. Once outside, he let out a sigh. This assassin business was giving him and everyone else each a killer headache and a base case of paranoia.

The agents all hoped the exaggerated 'killer' part would not become less of an exaggeration and more of a reality any time soon.

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A/N: I know I updated two whole days ago but I just fixed some typos I completely missed. Sorry about that


	16. Osamu

A/N: It's so late at night. I feel really bad for updating so late in the day, but I didn't even get home until a few minutes ago. Anyway, sorry if this chapter is a little slow. It's a little shorter than I wanted because I had to rewrite it multiple times, since the first two drafts were lost to bad internet connection and lag. I just wanted a chapter to explain Osamu's feelings at this point. After all, I did just set the assassin on him. Though that aside, sorry for any typos, errors, or just crappy writing over all. I hope everyone who celebrates Thanksgiving has a good holiday and I'll be back next week with another chapter.

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It was later in the evening when Osamu came to. He blinked his eyes open slowly, staring at the plain ceiling above him as he let his eyes focus. The teen glanced around the room, turning his head side to side slowly. He recognized the blurry area as one of the Tamakoma guest rooms, where he occasionally stayed if he was working late. Though despite the familiarity of the room, Osamu couldn't help the small amount of anxiety that appeared in his gut, fueled by his confusion.

The last thing Osamu remembered was leaving his house and heading to Tamakoma. He didn't remember ever getting there. After the memory of leaving his home there was just a blank, a gaping hole. In that case, how did he get where he was now? The agent drew in a deep breath and sat up, but he barely made it a few inches before a sharp pain stabbed the side of his chest, cutting off his breath. Osamu dropped back down, wincing slightly when he hit the mattress. He then tried again to get up, this time much slower with most of the strain going on his wrists. That ended horribly as well. Another stab of pain, this time in his left wrist, sent him back down.

Osamu exhaled deeply, then took into account that breathing caused only minor discomfort in his side that lessened with every breath. He then lifted his left arm, slowly and carefully, so he could see his wrist. It was wrapped and bandages, and when Osamu peeled them back a little to take a look, he saw a somewhat swollen purple bruise underneath. No wonder it had hurt when he tried to get up.

Next, Osamu used his good arm to pull off the blanket that was on him, then he felt around on his ribs. There were bandages there, too, and his hand was cold on his skin, causing him to instinctively withdraw it quickly.

Having finally taken stock of his injuries, Osamu tried once again to get up. He kept in mind the factors that had rendered his previous two attempts fruitless as he began moving. He propped himself up on his left elbow, pushing up as far as he could before putting his right arm down behind him. Osamu was able to move himself into sitting position with no pain at all. He had been a lot more careful then he needed, obviously, but after what happened in the Second Invasion, he didn't want to take any chances with injuries. He still didn't know exactly what was wrong, after all.

Now that he was sitting, Osamu encountered yet another problem. There was a dull throb at the back of his head, coming from an external source. The teen lifted his good hand and brushed his fingers over in gently. There was yet another bandage in the way, but he could feel a small knot. Taking that injury into account, Osamu moved his legs one at a time until they were hanging off the edge of the bed, his feet touching the floor. To ensure he wouldn't fall over, not sure if there were maybe other injuries he had missed, Osamu put his hand on the bedpost before shifting his weight to his feet and standing. He moved a little too quickly, and a small wave of dizziness washed over him, but it was gone quickly.

Finally on his feet, Osamu took a few test steps and found that he was okay. His head didn't hurt much, and the pain he had felt earlier in his chest seemed to be a one time thing, now reduced to only discomfort. His wrist was completely unbothered as long as he let it be.

Suddenly, Osamu heard the clanging of pots from downstairs, and he realized he was completely alone in the room. He had noticed before, but it hadn't really registered in his mind, which had been more preoccupied by other things. The smell of curry was detected by Osamu' s nose, and it made his stomach growl. The teen glanced at the window, and his eyes widened when he saw that it was getting dark out.

'What happened? How did I get injured? How long was I out?' The questions buzzed around in his head, starting a headache that matched the dull throb of his head injury. Deciding not to ponder the questions any longer, Osamu headed for the stairs to get some answers and some dinner. He was pleased to find that the stairs had little effect on his injuries. They were apparently much more minor than they had first seemed to be.

When Osamu got downstairs, he saw that the living area was empty, but he heard voices in the dining area. He moved quietly, incase he was interrupting something, and found nearly all of Tamakoma finishing up dinner. At least, he believed it was Tamakoma. All he saw were colorful blobs, and the teen realized his glasses weren't on his face, they actually hadn't even been with him when he woke up.

Everyone was talking, but one by one they silenced as their eyes landed on Osamu.

"Ah, Mikumo-kun! You're awake!" Shiori said. Osamu recognized her voice even though he couldn't see her. He shifted his gaze around the room, trying to locate her, but he couldn't really tell who was who, since his vision was so bad. Osamu even wondered how he had made it down the stairs. He'd only been able to see his wrist because it was so close, though he still wondered how he hadn't noticed the blurryness in his sight. He settled on the fact that he had been focused on other things, and was so used to putting his glasses on without thinking about it that he hadn't noticed that they weren't on his face.

"Usami-san?" he questioned, glancing around again. There was a sigh from another part of the room, followed by Kyosuke's voice.

"Shiori, his glasses," the teen reminded. There was a surprised 'oh' followed by the sound of a chair moving and footsteps. Shiori's face got clearer and clearer as she neared, before holding out her hand. Osamu saw his glasses and he nodded in thanks. The teen slid the glasses onto his face, then looked up at his comrades. He could now see that his earlier prediction had been right. All of Tamakoma was there, except for a boy who's hair matched the color that had been missing when every one was just blobs.

"Mikumo-kun, do you feel alright? You seem to have taken a couple good hits when Reiji found you," Rindo said, interrupting Osamu's train of thoughts. The teen blinked, then looked down at his damaged wrist.

"Oh, um, I'm fine. I'm just wondering, what happened?" he asked. Rindo raised and eyebrow, somewhat surprised that the agent didn't remember anything but also having expected it. Next to Rindo, Jin set down his spoon.

"I foresaw you being attacked this morning, so I told Rindo. He called Reiji to check up on you, and he found you unconscious in an alleyway. It seems my Side Effect predicted your attack a bit late. Reiji brought you here and someone from HQ came over here to make sure you weren't hurt too bad. Tachikawa came as well, since he's been working with Kido on the issue," the older teen explained. Osamu nodded, then stared at the wall, trying to remember anything at all. Slowly, the memories came back. Leaving his house, checking his phone, the odd feeling, the growl-like noise, the assassin, then, nothing. He could just remembering being frozen, unable to react at all as he was attacked.

"The assassin attacked me," he realized, voicing his thoughts. Those at the table nodded.

"That's what we thought," Rindo replied. Osamu gave a nod, then once again noticed the lack of an agent.

"Where's Kuga? He didn't get attacked too, right?" Osamu asked. He was sure that even if Yuma had been attacked, he'd be fine. Even so, the young Neighbor's absense worried him a bit. When the movement at the table suddenly stopped, Osamu's worry grew. Was Yuma okay?

"Yuma-kun was pretty upset when he found out that you had gotten hurt. He didn't look too upset, but he seemed like he was about to to find the assassin and fight it," Chika said, remembering Jin's words and Yuma's actions from earlier that day.

"Yuma left shortly after he found out about you. He said he was going to look for leads on the assassins whereabouts. Since you were attacked, we know that no one is safe. The assassin isn't afraid to hurt people. The hard thing is that we don't understand its full ability or what it's true goal is. Though in the end, whether it's after one person or looking to take down the whole of Border, we need to do something. If we just let this be, you could be attacked again, or someone else could be attacked. The next person might not get away with just some bruises and a sprained wrist, either," Jin added, his voice taking on a serious tone that turned the mood in the room to something dark. It left everyone quiet, not a single person moving at all.

"That aside, you look hungry, Mikumo-kun. I'll get you some curry," Shiori blurted randomly, breaking the silence and clearing up the heavy atmosphere that hung over the room. The others nodded, returning to their food. Osamu took a seat at the table, and despite the light chatter that had restarted, his mind refused to move out of the dark place it was lodged in. Why had the assassin done so little with him? If by chance this was the assassin that killed Yuma, why didn't it just kill him just like it meant to kill Yuma years ago? Did that mean this was a different assassin? Was Osamu himself the target? Was someone else in danger?

Osamu glanced over at Chika, who was smiling and talking to Reiji about her training. Could Chika be attacked? There were just too many questions and not nearly enough answers. When Shiori set a plate of curry in front of Osamu, he thanked her and began filling his empty stomach, pushing aside the questions for the time being. Though even with the nagging questions out of his mind, Osamu couldn't help but notice the thought in the back of his mind, something he had been thinking about the past couple minutes since he learned of Yuma's current activities.

The assassin was likely very strong and dangerous, and it had a Black Trigger. Yuma was strong too, and he also had a Black Trigger, but would he be okay outside in the dark by himself?

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A/N: I hope you guys found Osamu's little glasses mishap amusing. I always think I have mine on even if things are blurry, so I forget them a lot. I was trying for something a little funny, but I'm not sure if it worked out how I hoped.


	17. Paranoia and Choices

A/N: Well, this chapter is a a lot longer than I thought it would be. I originally planned for it to cover the next day as well, but Yuma's thoughts took a lot more space than I thought, and I hope it didn't make this chapter too slow. I hope you guys like the whole deal with Yotaro and Rindo. They don't have much interaction in the anime or manga, unfortunately, since neither are main characters like Him, Yuma, Osamu and Chika. I just wrote that part in the way I think it would play out should a problem like the current one arise. Anyway, sorry for any typos, errors, or crappy writing overall. I'll be back next week with another chapter.

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Yuma hadn't really thought about his actions much earlier in the day when he left Tamakoma. It had been only a few hours after Tachikawa left that Yuma decided to leave for awhile. He told the others that he was just going out to look for some leads, after seeing Jin eyeing him warily. While no one had Yuma's Side Effect to tell if he was lying, they let him go. After what Jin said, they had been sure Yuma wouldn't get himself into an unsure fight. Yuma wasn't stupid. Even though he was angry about what had happened to Osamu, he knew Jin was right. He shouldn't go fight the assassin just because he's angry. He's not the only one who was angry, and if he were to be hurt or killed, there was no doubt that Osamu would blame himself. That's the last thing Yuma needed at the moment.

However, when Yuma had left Tamakoma, his only clear intention was to only be out for an hour or two. Instead, he had stayed out very late. He walked around the whole of Mikado, not noticing the sun slipping below the horizon until the world around him was suddenly dark, illuminated by only streetlamps and headlights.

In the middle of the street, Yuma stopped, his head tilting back until his eyes were locked on bright white globe in the sky. The moon had a draw on Yuma, and every night he felt the need to look at it, even if it was a glance. It reminded him of his homeland, Neighborhood, and that in turn reminded him of his father. Yugo had been a strong, smart man, and Yuma saw him in Osamu. The only real difference was strength, since Yugo was far superior to Osamu in skill. Both were willing to help those in need, though Osamu seemed to be willing to go a bit further than Yugo would go.

When Yuma had found out about Osamu's attack, he had first been enraged. The assassin wasn't supposed to hurt his friends. It was only supposed to target Yuma. The fact that it was, as Jin said, using Osamu as bait to get Yuma to come out in the open, was low hanging fruit. Osamu was weak, but he was important to Yuma, an ideal target. Chika was similar, important to Yuma and weak. Sure, she had an enormous amount of Trion, but even if she was able to bring herself to shoot a living being, she wouldn't have much luck against the assassin's skill. It would be especially bad if the confrontation was a close one, where her sniper Trigger would be useless.

In the end, Yuma had few options. He could fight this assassin once and for all so it wouldn't hurt his friends and possibly die in the process, he could reveal the assassin's true intentions and get help in taking it down while likely losing the trust of those close to him, or he could just wait and see, keeping a close eye on Osamu and Chika. The first option had the least risk for Yuma's comrades, but the most for Yuma himself. The second option was a balance of both, though even if the assassin was taken out, Kido might try to have him executed for 'breaking the rules of their agreement' or something like that. The third option had the least risk for Yuma, but the most for his friends. He felt that it was the most selfish option, and immediately wanted to discard it. However, he didn't want to harm the trust of people like Osamu and Chika, who didn't deserve it, and Jin had told him not to go after the assassin on his own. Yuma knew Jin's Side Effect had been acting up lately, but he didn't know to what extent. If he went for option one, Jin might forsee it and intervene, plus Yuma had the feeling Jin already understood the situation very clearly.

Yuma was still contemplating his options and going over his choices when the hair on the back of his neck suddenly stood up. The boy was instantly on alert, his spine stiffening and his legs tensing, ready for a fight. It might be going against Jin's advice to fight, even if the assassin came to him, rather than the other way around. Though on the other hand, in a case like such he wouldn't have been lying earlier When he said he was just going out yo look for leads, not to pick a fight.

"Trig-" Yuma began quietly, though he cut off when he remembered something from back when he first joined Border. Something about energy signatures and Triggers that he didn't understand much. If he activated his Trigger, Border would know instantly. In the case that Yuma was being paranoid, if he activated his Trigger and no danger arose, he'd been in deep trouble, and would be unable to properly keep Osamu and Chika safe. The best idea would be to not activate his Trigger unless he confirmed that the enemy was there. He would have a small time frame though, very clearly remembering how fast the assassin's attack had been years ago. It could be even faster now, and could possibly leave Yuma with no time to react.

The surrounding area was dead silent, despite the fact that cars and a few people had been passing through only a minute ago. It put Yuma more on edge, and the teen glanced around, looking for those all-too-familiar purple flames. He was ready to fight at a moment's notice.

"Hey, Yuma-kun!"

Yuma's head whipped in the direction of the source, his lips parting as he got ready to activate his Trigger. Through when Yuma's eyes landed on the black haired, green eyed teenager calling his name, he snapped his mouth shut and instantly tried to look as normal as possible.

"Oh, Arashiyama-senpai," the young Neighbor said nonchalantly, nodding at the captain walking toward him on the street. Kitora, Satori and Tokieda were also there, and Kitora already looked ready to get into an argument with Yuma even though the two hadn't even spoken to each other yet.

"What're you doing out here so late at night?" Arashiyama asked. Yuma shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets. Even in his Trion body, he felt cold and heat, and his hands were getting chilled.

"I didn't have anything to do, so I went out to walk, but I lost track of time a bit," Yuma said with a duckface. "What about you, Arashiyama-senpai?" he asked.

"We were all at Border late finishing a commercial. Us four were just headed home. You should go too, Yuma-kun. It's getting cold, and its already pretty dark," the older teen recommended. Yuma nodded, then waved at the four agents as they continued their walk. Yuma noticed that the odd feeling he'd had earlier was gone. Maybe he was paranoid...

Deciding to take the advice he had been given, Yuma headed back to Tamakoma. It was likely Osamu was awake by now, and he was planning to recommend that both Osamu and China start staying at Tamakoma where they would be safer, not in danger of being attacked on their way to work. Also, even though the assassin had gotten past the security system, there were five skilled agents, one with a Black Trigger, who would protect them.

-0-0-0-0-0-

When Yuma got back to Tamakoma, everyone was washing dishes or watching TV. They seemed to have just finished dinner. Shiori was the first to notice the white haired Neighbor as he walked into the kitchen.

"Yuma-kun, are you hungry? We still have some curry if you are," the operator offered. Yuma nodded and thanked her as she went to get him a plate, Konami taking over handling all the dishes herself in Shiori's absence. Yuma then continued to the living area, where Jin, Rindo, Reiji and Kyosuke were sitting around the TV. Osamu and Chika were also there, but they were both asleep on one of the couches. It made sense, since it was late, and they were probably exhausted. Yuma noticed that Yotaro was sitting extremely close to Rindo, with Raijimaru on his other side. Rindo had his arm behind his son, stretched out on the back on the couch with his hand hanging limply. Yuma recognized the position instantly: protection. Rindo cared for Yotaro very much, and Yuma guessed the man was worried that his young son could possibly be a target.

Jin, who sat in a chair, was the first to notice that Yuma was in the room.

"Did you find anything Yuma?" he asked. Yuma shook his head.

"No, but I was thinking Osamu and Chika should stay at Tamakoma until this whole assassin issue is over with. They're both too weak to protect themselves," the Neighbor said, nodding at Osamu to emphasize his point. Jin nodded.

"I was thinking the same thing," he agreed. Yuma nodded, and was about to speak again when Shiori called him, saying his curry was ready. Yuma left the living area to eat his dinner, and Jin watched him go with slight relief. With his Side Effect not working, he had been unsure if Yuma would be okay. He was glad to see that the Neighbor was unharmed. At least one good thing had happened that day.

Not long after Yuma finished his curry, the Tamakoma agents began heading off to bed. Jin woke Chika and Osamu, and with the help of Yuma, got the two sleepy teens to the guest rooms and into bed before the both fell asleep again. The two were exhausted from the assassin issue, like everyone else, and Osamu was still tired from his run-in with the assassin, despite the fact that he had slept through a decent portion of the day.

Konami, Shiori and Reiji retired next, going to their rooms. The three were bid goodnight by those still awake as they left to get some sleep. Jin, Yuma, Kyosuke, Rindo and Yotaro remained in the room. Yotaro was fast asleep against his father's side though, his helmet sliding forward a bit on his head. The boy was still sat extremely close to his father, leaning against the man's side.

"Jin, can you take care of things at Tamakoma for about an hour tomorrow morning? I spoke with Yosuke earlier, and asked him if he could watch Yotaro for a few days. I told him everyone here would be a bit busy for the next few days and I didn't want to leave him here by himself all the time, since he's only five. I'm going to drop Yotaro off tomorrow, and he's going to stay with Yosuke until this assassin buisness is done," Rindo explained.

"You're worried Yotaro could be attacked, since he's small and for the most part defenseless," Yuma said, voicing his earlier thoughts without beating around the Bush or sugar coating his words. It was just like Yuma to be a bit blunt, even in sensitive situations. Rindo nodded, his face drooping in an uncharacteristic frown. It made sense that the man would be worried, and Yuma felt bad that this whole problem had escalated to the point that Rindo was sending his son off to a trusted friend for what would likely be many days, possibly even a week or more, and for what? None of this would have happened if Yuma hadn't panicked that first time he saw the assassin. He should have attacked, done at least something. There were plenty of other agents there that could have helped him. This whole mess could have been avoided, stopped before it even started. Yuma pushed those thoughts away though. No use crying over spilled milk.

"Yeah, I'll keep an eye on things," Jin agreed, his tone kind, the one he used when he wasn't goofing around but also wasn't being straight faced and dead serious. Just the one for a casual conversation. Rindo smiled and nodded, before standing. He picked Yotaro up and carried the boy out of the room, Rajinmaru following behind them. The man did not return, so everyone assumed he had gone to bed.

Without a word, Kyosuke got up and waved over his shoulder, signalling that he too was going to turn in for the night. Neither Jin or Yuma said anything, instead staring at the bright TV in front of them, yet to be turned off.

"I should probably get some sleep if I'm going to take care of the place tomorrow morning," Jin said a short while after Kyosuke left. Yuma nodded as his senpai got up. Jin ruffled Yuma's fluffy hair, giving the Neighbor a small smile before heading to bed. In his room, Jin tossed his jacket aside before changing into something more comfortable to sleep in. It had been a long day, and his headache had made things much harder than they needed to be. Jin flopped down on his stomach on his bed as the exhaustion caught up to him, creeping up his limbs and turning them to lead. The agent didn't bother to even try moving out of the uncomfortable position he was in, instead letting his mind go blank as he fell asleep.

Left alone in the living area, Yuma couldn't think of anything to do. He decided to continue watching TV, since he still didn't know everything about Japan. Maybe he could learn something. Though the odd feeling of being watched quickly showed its ugly face, constantly creeping up on the Neighbors senses before disappearing when he looked around. Yuma recognized this not as instinct, but as paranoia. It would be a really long night.

* * *

A/N: One last thing. I have a poll up on my profile right now. It would extremely helpful for you guys to go vote. It's just a thing about future stories and the characters who would involved. You don't have to vote, but it would be great if you did. Also, sorry if it seems like I ignore reviews. I always read all reviews and I'm really glad you guys took the time to comment. I just noticed I never really say anything about those and I didn't want to seem rude.


	18. Rindo

A/N: *Drowns in all the essays and homework due Monday that I forgot about until Sunday night* I think I might be subconsciously stretching things out as far as I can so the story won't end soon or something, because once again the chapter didn't leave off where I thought it would. I'm trying to make them about 2,000 words each, just so I don't have any huge differencs in chapter length like in the beginning. Anyway, this chapter focused more on Rindo, and how I think he would react in the situation. There is also a bit of Kido playing dirty, since we all know he can be a nasty person when he doesn't get his way. I hope this isn't too bad, since I haven't been able to get a good understanding of Rindo as a character, since he doesn't have much screen time. That aside, sorry for any typos, errors and just overall crappy writing. Enjoy the chapter and I'll be back next week with another.

* * *

The next morning, Yuma was still laying on the couch watching television when Jin came into the room. He was dressed in his normal Border uniform, blue Tamakoma jacket, boots and all. His sunglasses reflected the light that shone through the window. His hair was neatly combed back like always, not covering his face. It was all the same as usual, except Yuma noticed a few things that were off. Jin looked a little paler than usual, and he seemed just a little bit thinner. The area under his eyes was light lilac, and his eyes themselves weren't as bright as they usually were.

"Jin-san, so you feel okay?" Yuma asked, tilting his head slightly to lock eyes with his superior. Jin nodded and gave the young Neighbor a smile, but Yuma could tell that it was a little more forced.

"Yeah, I just have a little bit of a headache," Jin said simply. Yuma stared into the icy blue eyes of the older teen, and his Side Effect told him that Jin was not lying. Even so, it's didn't seem like 'a little bit of a headache' would make Jin seem this much different. Despite that, Yuma knew his Side Effect was never wrong, so he decided to buy the explanation. After all, he could just be imagining things. The Neighbor returned his eyes to the television, but his focus was still on the other Border agent in the room.

He heard the sound of boots against the floor as Jin walked to the kitchen, the sound pausing as Jin opened the refrigerator and gazed inside. The sound resumed as Jin shut the refrigerator and walked back to the living area, returning to Yuma's field of vision holding two apples. He offered one to the white-haired teen on the couch, and Yuma took it, nodding in thanks. Jin nodded back, then sat on the couch opposite Yuma's. The two teens ate their breakfast whilst watching the cheesy romance show that had marathoned over the past twelve hours. Yuma found it boring, but it had at least been something to do all night. It had for the most part kept his mind off the assassin, giving him a little bit of a break. Though just because he didn't think of a problem didn't mean it wasn't there.

Not too long after Jin came downstairs, Rindo came down. He had a small duffel bag slung over one shoulder, and a sleepy Yotaro in his free arm. Yuma glanced at the time and saw that it was almost 8am, a bit early for a five year old who stayed up late. No wonder Yotaro was still tired. When Yuma had been younger, about Yotaro's age, his father would sometimes let him sleep until at least 9am. That was only on occasion though. With all their traveling, Yuma was usually woken even sooner. Even so, Yotaro usually slept until about 9:30am, so the earlier time was probably a bit too soon for him.

"Jin, Yuma, I'm going to Yosuke's. I'll be back within the hour. I'm going to go drop off Yotaro," Rindo said, readjusting Yotaro so he wouldn't fall. Even though Yotaro was pretty small, he wasn't very easy to carry. Rindo glanced around, looking for one last thing. Rindo walked behind the kitchen table, then set Yotaro down on the reddish-brown capybara that was behind it.

"We'll be here," Jin said over his shoulder to his boss as Rindo headed to the door, Raijinmaru behind him with Yotaro on his back. Rindo waved at the two in the living area, then disappeared down that hallway. Seconds later, Jin and Yuma heard the sound of a door opening then closing before the room was silent, bar the quiet voices from the TV. Jin and Yuma once again returned their attention to the show that they were half-watching as they waited for the rest of Tamakoma to wake up.

Within the hour, the others came out of their rooms. Reiji was the first to come out, having woken up only a few minutes after Rindo left. Kyosuke emerged from his room soon after, followed by Osamu and Shiori. Chika and Konami were the last to join everyone in the living room, the latter still looking half asleep.

As every one got settled on the furniture in the living area, they glanced at what was on the TV. Osamu raised an eyebrow at Yuma and Jin, who both shrugged.

"Konami, your hair is sticking up," Kyosuke said from where he sat in a chair by himself. He had his left leg crossed over his right, one elbow balanced on the arm of the chair to prop up his head. Konami, who sat on one of the couches next to Shiori, went wide eyed before putting her hands up, combing her thin fingers through her perfectly straight strawberry blond hair.

"Konami-senpai, your hair is fine. It wasn't sticking up at all," Osamu pointed out from across the coffee table on the other couch where he sat with Yuma and Chika. Konami froze, her face going pale. She then suddenly jumped up and lunged across the coffee table, locking an arm around Osamu's neck in a headlock before messing his hair up.

"You tricked meeeee!" she screeched like she always did in these types of situations.

"Karasuma-senpai tricked you, not me!" Osamu said, sending Jin and Kyosuke a desperate look as he attempted to pry his senpai away. Jin chuckled, then took pity on his kouhai.

"That's enough, Konami-chan," he said. Konami narrowed her eyes at him, but released Osamu and returned to her seat. Chika giggled when she looked at Osamu, who frowned sadly as he tried to fix his now sticking up, messy hair.

Everyone fell into a relaxed silence as they watched the cheesy show on the TV, no one scheduled to work for the day.

At around 9:30am, the door to Tamakoma opened, then was pulled shut. Everyone looked in the direction of the door as Rindo came into view.

"Did you get Yotaro dropped off okay?" Jin asked. Rindo nodded.

"Yeah, I did. Yosuke didn't ask any questions, thankfully. The assassin matter is classified, so he doesn't know about it. If had asked questions, I might have ended up either explaining everything to him or returning with Yotaro and Raijinmaru," the man said, running a hand through his hair, a sign of stress. He walked into the living area and sat down next to Osamu on the couch.

 _*As Rindo approached the Yoneya household, he began feeling a bit uneasy. Would Yosuke ask questions? Rindo was good at deception, just like any other high-ranking Border agent, but Yosuke worked with the quiet, moody, brooding ball of rage that was Shuji Miwa. If there was anyone who could pester someone relentlessly with never-ending questions to get even a little bit of information and not get tired, it's was Yosuke._

 _Brushing his thoughts aside, Rindo rang the doorbell. There were light footsteps in the house for a moment before the door opened to reveal Yosuke, who wore black jeans and a purple t-shirt._

 _"Hey Yotaro, Rindo-san," he greeted. Rindo gave the teen in front of him a smile, then watched as Raijinmaru walked right into the house, Yotaro still on his back. Rindo pulled the small light duffel bag off his shoulder and gave it to Yosuke._

 _"I just put enough clothes for a few days in there, as well as a few other things. I'm sorry for asking you to watch him on such short notice," Rindo apologized. Yosuke took the duffel bag and chuckled, shaking his head._

 _"It's fine. Border is busy work," he said, his words coming from experience. Rindo smiled again and nodded._

 _"Well, thanks again. If he gives you too much trouble, just give me a call. Things should die down within the next few days, and everyone's assignments should be wrapped up quickly, so I'll be back then to get Yotaro," he explained. Yosuke gave the man a nod, then turned toward Yotaro and Raijinmaru, shutting the door behind him. Rindo turned and walked away from the house, his smile fading, replaced by a grim frown. Things had gone well here, but there was no telling if Tamakoma's situation would be good as well.*_

Tamakoma fell into silence, everyone fixated once again on the TV. That is until Rindo's phone went off. The man frowned as he looked down at it. He was relieved to see that it wasn't Yosuke calling, since that could mean Yotaro got himself into trouble. However, the fact that the call was from Shinoda was very confusing. The meeting concerning the assassin was happening in three days, and Run so couldn't think of a reason why he would have been contacted before then. The Tamakoma Director stood up and walked into the hallway before taking the call.

"Hello?"

"Rindo, it's Shinoda. Kido asked me to tell you that there was a report of a Gate opening a few cities away. We were planning on sending Kazama squad, but Kido wants to keep them around in case another Gate shows up. He decided instead to send Tamakoma-1," Shinoda explained. Rindo did not reply immediately, his brain processing what he had been told.

"Doesn't he realize I need those three around? If Tamakoma gets attacked, it's them, Yuma and Jin who'll have to keep Mikumo-kun and Chika-chan safe. As good as Jin and Yuma are, I'm not sure that they could handle things themselves, and I can't do much to help. I haven't used a Trigger in years. We don't know the ability of the assassin's abilities, except that it was able to take down Mikumo-kun before he could even activate his Trigger. If I send Konami-chan, Kyosuke-kun and Reiji out to investigate this Gate, we could end up with more than a mild injury or two," Rindo hissed, keeping his voice low so those in the living area wouldn't hear him. There was a sigh on the other end.

"I was against sending them too, but Kido-san was pretty adamant. He said something about it being better to make sure our problems stay in Mikado and don't spread to other cities. Also, Tamakoma-1 will only be gone about a week," Shinoda said, trying to find some sort of silver lining.

"Are you sure Kido won't change his mind?" Rindo asked, a plan to argue with his boss until he complied forming in his head. Shinoda paused for a moment.

"I spent and hour talking to him about it. This is just like the Black Trigger Retrieval Mission though. He won't back down," the man said. Rindo sighed.

"Tamakoma-1 works under me, so they don't go unless I tell them to," Rindo pointed out.

"True, but Miwa squad works under Kido, who is willing to give them time off so Yosuke can spend more time around Yotaro. However, if Tamakoma-1 isn't sent out, things could change. We both know Yosuke doesn't know what's going on, so he won't know not to leave Yotaro alone. At least, that's the point Kido-san made," Shinoda said, his voice somewhat cold. Rindo's eyes widened. Was Kido trying to threaten him? Why was the man so admant about sending Tamakoma-1 to investigate the Gate? Was it in a major city, or did they just need a skilled team? Or maybe Kido hoped that by sending away some of Tamakoma's defense, it will be easier for the assassin to take out its target and finally get out of their hair.

Both men were silent for a minute as Rindo looked at his dilemma. If he went through with Kido's plan, Jin and Yuma would still be at Tamakoma. It might even be possible to get Tachikawa or Kazama to act as an extra guard. Also, Yosuke would be able to keep a good eye on Yotaro. However, if Rindo refused, while Tamakoma would be safer, Yotaro would be in more danger. He could just go get Yotaro back from Yosuke, but then the teen would be confused and rumors could start, making things turn sour. Plus, Tamakoma still wouldn't be as safe as Yosuke's house. The decision had to come down to the people though. Sending Tamakoma-1 would be better for the civilians in the area where the possible Gate was. Civilians had to come first, that's how Border worked. Rindo sighed, making his decision.

"Alright, I'll send them. This isn't over though," Rindo said icily before hanging up. The man looked back the way he had come, his eyes landing on the agents in the living area as he wondered if he was making the right decision or if he was just acting on emotion.

* * *

A/N: I'll be keeping the poll up for the main character of my next story. I know I won't be starting another multi-chapter until Black Trigger is finished, but I might sneak in some one-shots. I can't do any this week unfortunately because three of my teachers have a big test in their classes set for tomorrow (help). Also, I finally started writing down the prompts I've been given by you guys in a notebook, so I should be able to make a few one-shots out of some of those. Anyway, thanks to everyone who voted on the poll, and if you haven't and you want to, just go to my profile and it should be at the top of the page.


	19. Departures and a pesky agent

A/N: Sorry for another late in the day update! I ended up staying late at an event I was working at. Anyway, this chapter ended up being so much slower than I wanted. I could only go to a certain point, and I found myself with far too few events for this chapter, but things will get interesting, I promise. I'm not sure how I managed to get this chapter out honestly. As it turns out, my entire English class failed an essay from last week, how fun, so we're all stuck redoing it. That aside, sorry for any OOCness, typos, errors and just overall crappy writing. I'll be back next week with another chapter, should things go how I want.

* * *

Rindo sighed and rubbed the side of his head, half in frustration and half in exhaustion. He was 101% done with everything at the moment, and almost wished the assassin would just come out and attack them right now. At least then, everyone would still be at Tamakoma, and should be powerful enough to beat the assassin. Konami, Kyosuke and Reiji made up Border's strongest team, and Jin's abilities very easily backed up his self-proclaimed 'Power Elite' title. Yuma was a war veteran with a Black Trigger. Shiori was a dependable operator. While Chika and Osamu weren't very skilled, Chika had tremendous Trion and Osamu had a strategic mind. While they wouldn't be able to do much on their own, they would still be able to contribute to the other's, maybe even enough to tip the scales in their favor if needed.

A chirp from the phone in his hand startled Rindo out of his thoughts, and the man checked to see what had come up. It was a text from Shinoda, containing information on Tamakoma-1's assignment. The man scanned over it, slowly beginning to walk back to the living area. The man glanced up at his agents, who were all still silently watching the show on the television. He almost wanted to leave the group be, give then some time to relax. However, Rindo knew that he would need to say something soon, since his team was due to leave in one hour. Besides, they were Border agents.

"Reiji, Kyosuke-kun, Konami-chan, Kido has a job for you," Rindo said, moving so he stood just behind the chair occupied by Kyosuke. All the agents in the room turned to look at Rindo, even though only three of them had been called.

"A job? Right now?" Reiji asked. Rindo nodded.

"You'll be going to Shizuku City, about three hours from here. You three, along with Shiori-chan, will be there for a week. The reports say that there was a possible Gate there. Kido wants you three to got out an act as the guards for the city. You'll watch for any more Gates, and if none appear during the week that you're there, then it's likely the phenomenon before wasn't a Gate. You're scheduled to leave in one hour," the man explained. Kyosuke and Reiji looked a little unsure, but the two young men nodded and stood. Konami on the other hand looked more than a little upset.

"Why right now? Four-Eyes just got attacked by the assassin, so we should stay here in case it show up again!" she argued.

"Konami-senpai, if you three stay here and nothing happens, but more Gates open in that city, it'll look bad for Border. Then that will reflect on you three, since you refuse to go. You can't tell the public about the assassin, so how will you deflect the bad image you'll get?" Osamu asked. He looked a bit unnerved about the fact that three of the five truly capable combat agents, as well as Tamakoma's only operator, was going to a city three hours away. However, he was still being logical, and his reasoning held all the right questions.

Konami glared at Osamu, not happy that her kouhai wasn't supporting her case, especially when she as arguing that they should not fulfil their duties and instead should stay and protect their juniors. She knew he was right though.

"Just go, Konami-chan. Yuma and I will still be here if anything goes wrong. Leave it to the Power Elite!" Jin encouraged, giving his signature smile. It was more forced, and Konami saw that easily. She could That something was bothering the teen, and he definitely wouldn't be at his best that day. Even so, she knew it was her duty as a Border agent to protect the civilians who cannot protect themselves. The people in Shizuku wouldn't stand a chance against Neighbors. Tamakoma would still have Jin and Yuma, as well as Osamu's mind and Chika's Trion. They would at least have a chance.

"Fine," she surrendered, standing up and walking off to her room. Kyosuke and Reiji followed after her, Shiori walking after them. The rest of the agents in the room turned to Rindo, and noticed that the man's lips were drawn into a thin line. Something was bothering him, and while they were all curious, they respected their boss' privacy and didn't ask. If it concerned them, he would say something.

-000-

One hour later, Tamakoma-1 and Shiori were finishing loading their bags into their truck. Reiji got in the drivers seat and Kyosuke and Konami got in the back, but Shiori didn't get in the truck yet. Instead she walked up to Chika and pinched the girl's cheeks, tugging on them like she tended to do after Rank Wars.

"Stay safe Chika-chan, everyone," the operator said. They all nodded, though Chika struggled a little because Shiori was still pinching her cheeks. When the operator finally let go, she climbed into the truck next to Reiji in the front passenger seat. The agents gave their boss and comrades a wave before Reiji started the truck and headed for Shizuku. Chika, Yuma, Osamu, Rindo and Jin watched them go, not going back inside until the agents had disappeared from sight.

The five filed back through the door to the base, returning to the living area. They all dropped back down on the couches and chairs, Rindo taking the chair previously occupied by Kyosuke. Chika, Yuma and Osamu sat on one couch while Jin laid down on the other. His rubbed the side of his head discreetly, and no one seemed to notice. That was good for him, since he didn't want add more problems to the long lists everyone already had. His headaches were still getting worse and more frequent to the point that for him to see anything with his Side Effect was rare and uncontrolled. The headaches annoyed him because he didn't know what the source was. However, he had a feeling it had something to do with the assassin.

The Border agents continued watching the show on the television, but they weren't really into it. All of their minds were elsewhere. Rindo wondered if what Shinoda had said about Kido giving Miwa squad some time off was more than just bait. He hoped it was true, since Tamakoma definitely wasn't safe for a five year old. Especially not now that Tamakoma-1 was gone.

On one of the couches, Chika and Osamu were both thinking about those who left. The assassin who was after them could be targeting one person or even the entirety of Tamakoma. If by some chance it was one of those three the assassin was after, then they were in more danger. Just the three of them three hours away from Mikado, where Border was, would prove a bad combination if one of them was targeted. Despite their skill, a Black Trigger could prove to be too much to handle. After all, things hadn't gone the best for them during the Second Invasion.

Next to them, Yuma was thinking something entirely different. The assassin was after him and he knew that. Konami, Reiji and Kyosuke were gone, putting them out of danger. However, that made it more dangerous for those still at Tamakoma. If the assassin was going to lure Yuma out by attacking people close to him, there weren't many options. Anyone in Tamakoma would be decent bait, but Osamu and Chika were the best targets. They were part of Yuma's team, his good friends. Plus they were unskilled and limited when it came to fighting. Yuma had though about that many times over in his head on multiple occasions, and found himself unable to push the thought away. The young Neighbor glanced at the two he was thinking off, his eyes going to Osamu's injured wrist. He couldn't let something like the previous day's events happen again, and he sure as hell couldn't let worse things happen.

On the other couch, Jin frowned when he felt nature calling. He was comfortable on the couch, but at the same time his discomfort was growing. The agents sat up, planting his feet on the floor before standing and heading to the stairs.

"I'll be right back," he said to the four pairs of eyes who's stares he felt on his back. The Elite made his way to the bathroom, doing his business before moving go the sink. He rinsed his hands in the warm water, then turned off the tap and grabbed a small hand towell to dry his hands.

Just as Jin got the hand towel back on its rack, he felt the familiar powerful throb in the back on his head. His hands went to his hair, shaking as they ran through it stressfully, the first waves of pain washing over him. Jin bit his lip to stifle any noise, because these bad headaches hurt. A lot. This one seemed to be even worse than usual. Jin slowly knelt down as he felt his legs grow a little shaky and unsteady, and he just barely made it before images and voice began flashing through his mind. He saw himself going to the grocery store, but he never made it. The purple-flamed being from before was there, the assassin, and it intercepted him. The assassin attacked the unsuspecting Jin, who was rubbing at his head as a small throb began in his skull. The images stopped abruptly, and Jin had a feeling he knew what had happened.

He wouldn't be going to the store any time soon.

-000-

Not far from Tamakoma, the assassin was waiting. It watched four Tamakoma agents leave in a truck, and noted that none of them were his target or good bait. That meant the defence of the building was probably much lower, though the job couldn't be done yet. There was one more person who needed to be taken out of the equation, someone who had kept Yuma Kuga from taking the bait the previous day. It was a person who had caused nothing but trouble.

The assassin looked down at a syringe full of glowing yellow liquid that it held in it's hand. This mixture had a specific purpose. It was meant to temporarily or permanently disable a Side Effect. It blocked the connection between the Side Effect and the brain, rendering the Side Effect useless. The length of the effect depended on the person and their amount of Trion. In this case, the assassin didn't care if the effects were permanent or not, as long as it lasted long enough to take out Yuma Kuga.

Soon, the assassin would corner Yuichi Jin. The teen was strong, and would definitely put up a fight. That could cause problems, and the assassin wanted to lessen the threat as much as possible in order to make the job simple, without bringing the wrath or Border on itself. That's why the Side Effect drug was laced with a sedative. If all went well, everything would be done in a day. The job was already taking too long. The assassin turned its attention to Tamakoma. The time was near.

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A/N: Was that ending interesting enough? I hope it leaves at least some one with a feeling of suspense, oreven just something that is not disappointment. That aside, if I were to do a quick one-shot related to the anime filler, would anyone be against it? If a lot of you don't watch the anime or don't like the filler, or even if you're not that far and you want to make sure you avoid spoilers, then I'd wait on writing something like that. Also, thanks again to everyone who voted in the poll. This week will probably be it's last week, since I have break from school starting next week, so I'll be able to get some more written. So vote if you'd like to give your input, but you don't have to if you don't want to


	20. Meetings

A/N: I didn't forget to update I promise! Turns out I had to work today right after school and I didn't get to go home first. I ended up getting home 16 hours after I left for school, but at least I don't have homework. Anyway, sorry for any typos, errors, OOCness and just overall crappy writing. I was going to say something else but I completely forgot what it was so it must not be that important. I'll make sure I have a chapter written and edited for next week in case I work late on Tuesday again, so I can at least get it up as soon as I get home. Happy Holidays :)

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For the next few days until the meeting, the agents went about doing their own thing. Rindo sat in his office, doing paperwork and receiving daily reports from Shiori, Konami, Kyosuke and Reiji. The agents had found nothing suspicious in Shizuku, and were watching over the city. The three Trigger users worked eight hour shifts each, one of them watching the city while the other two either slept or waited for their shift. At HQ, Miwa squad was surprised to find that their defense duty had been moved to another time on another day.

The fact that nothing seemed to be happening in Shizuku was both relieving and bothersome for Rindo. He was glad that there was nothing going on where Tamakoma-1 was, since Tamakoma as a branch was already dealing with enough. To have a conflict in another city to worry about could cause instability and holes in their defense, a way for the assassin to slip in and do some damage. It could also cause those in Shizuku to be sloppy, and that would reflect poorly on Border.

For Osamu, the few days before the meeting was time to rest and recover, and to do a little bit of light training that didn't involve too much work. He felt pretty useless, partly because he couldn't do anything to combat the assassin and partly because he was still recovering from the attack that he had been defenseless in. The fact that he didn't even last long enough to activate his Trigger was pitiful, and the only thing that really raised Osamu's spirits was how serious everyone was about the assassin issue. It made him feel like being taken down so quickly wasn't as horrible as he thought. The enemy was a strong and smart one, and everyone knew after what they'd seen it do.

Jin didn't show his face much in the days before the meeting. He was supposed to go to the meeting, along with Shinoda, Kido, Tachikawa and Rindo, even though his Side Effect wasn't working. Rindo knew Jin's Side Effect was off, and Kido had probably received the information as well, along with Shinoda, but only Jin knew that it was random and defective. The fact that it still worked made him think that someone was doing this to him intentionally, messing with his Side Effect. That fact that it first started with Yuma, not working on him, and the fact that Jin was sure the assassin was after Yuma, made the brunette think that maybe it was the assassin. Though when it came to Triggers and Neighbors, it was hard to tell.

When asked about the assassin, Jin had few words. When he got his headaches, which began the voices and images in his head, he saw enough to know that the words he spoke were completely factual.

"This enemy is a troublesome one. More troublesome than we think," he said whenever the topic came up. His words were vague and mysterious like always, to the point that it was a little creepy, but at the moment that didn't matter. All that mattered was finding a solution, and once again, just like in the past few weeks, Jin didn't have one. No matter how long he flipped through the thin file of information, he came up with nothing.

Chika was a little worried about Tamakoma, especially after Konami, Shiori, Kyosuke and Reiji left for Shizuku. They had little defense, and while Chika herself had a lot of Trion, she couldn't utilize it well. To even make herself the slightest bit more useful, she practiced sniping when she could. Whether she was at Tamakoma or HQ, she practiced. Even if she could get one shot in, be it offensive or a distraction, maybe even a signal, she wanted to be able to help. She had been helpless when her friend and brother were taken, and she didn't want things to turn out the same way with whoever the assassin was after.

Yuma in particular knew how strong the assassin was. Instead of sitting in his room reading old files about Black Triggers and Neighbors like Jin, or practicing like Chika and Osamu, Yuma investigated. He went over everything that had happened so far, from his encounter years ago to Osamu's attack days ago. He ran his thumb over the bumb on his finger that was his Black Trigger, thinking. He'd done too much of that lately.

When he could, Yuma talked to the other's at Tamakoma. He asked Osamu about his encounter, and he asked Chika if she was ever even able to feel the assassin's presence. He avoided talking to Jin, since that would end up with Jin picking away with him, taking information and being cryptic until he knew what he wanted to know. Yuma also didn't talk much with Rindo, only asking the man about what Kido knew. With what he already knew, combined with the information he got from the other's, Yuma had a bit of a plan. It was almost identical to what he'd been thinking before, but still a little better. He would stay alert and watch for the assassin, make sure neither Chika or Osamu were targeted, and get the problem solved as soon as possible. He'd probably ask Jin for help in taking down the assassin, once he found the other Neighbor that is.

-000-

The day of the meeting, Rindo woke up at 6am. The meeting was in an hour, and the man cursed himself for not recommending to have the meeting later in the day. There was no reason to throw a fit though, since that would change nothing. Instead the man took a quick shower, combed his spiky hair to make it look just a little bit neater, then put on a clean suit. He cleaned his glasses, slipping them onto his face before walking out of his room and heading to the living area.

Jin had gotten up earlier than Rindo, and decided to wait for the man in the kitchen. More accurately, Jin had been unable to sleep the night before. At one point he had gone up on the roof where Yuma was, walking to the edge, where he stood behind the white haired Neighbor who was perched on the ledge. The two were unmoving, both staring at the bright moon in the sky as if it would solve all their problems.

A few times, Jin had shifted his gaze down at Yuma. He tried using his Side Effect on the Neighbor, but it didn't work at all. A mild headache began behind Jin's eyes, growing stronger with every attempt to see into the Neighbor's future. The brunette tried a many times as he dared, returning his focus to the bright sphere in the sky after the headache became too overpowering. With other people, despite being random, his Side Effect still showed him things. However, Jin noted that nothing had changed when it came to Yuma. He still couldn't see a thing.

Soon the chill of the night properly acquainted itself with Jin, and the teen retreated back to his room without a word. He laid awake the rest of the night, reluctantly rolling out of bed to get ready to go to HQ for the meeting that was at 7am.

When Rindo got to the kitchen, he was slightly spooked when his eyes landed on Jin. He hadn't expected to see the teen sitting on one of the stools, though after recovering from the slight scare, Rindo gave his subordinate a wave.

"You ready to go?" the Director asked. Jin nodded and hopped off the stool, heading for the door. Rindo noticed the slight sluggishness of Jin's movements that the agent was no doubt trying to hide, as well as the fact that the teen seemed completely disinterested in the food in the room. The four-eyed man sighed, coming to the correct conclusion. He'd know Jin for years, so he knew that the two things he'd noticed were signs that the teen hadn't gotten much sleep the previous night. There wasn't much that could be done though, so Rindo simply headed for the door behind his subordinate.

The walk to HQ was quiet, and would have been silent if not for the sound of the rushing river under Tamakoma and the growls of cars that passed by. Rindo and Jin made their way quickly to Border, finding the room where the meeting was to be held with minutes to spare. Shinoda was talking to Kido, and Tachikawa was leaning against the wall, the three having already been in the room. Tachikawa gave Rindo and Jin a nod which the two returned before the latter tapped his boss on the shoulder.

"I'm going to step outside for a few minutes before the meeting starts, Rindo-san. I didn't sleep much last night, so I have a bit of a headache," Jin said quietly. Rindo nodded, turning to watch his subordinate leave the room before being called over by Kido. Rindo joined Shinoda and Kido, who were setting out papers from the file that had been made concerning the assassin.

Near the wall, Tachikawa was staring at the door. His lip reading skills were poor, and he hadn't been able to hear Jin as he spoke to Rindo, but Tachikawa could tell by the dark marks under the teen's eyes that he was tired. Jin had begun to show exhaustion, a rare sight. It was a bit concerning actually. Tachikawa noticed him rubbing his head a lot, and had bought ibuprofen, but the pain relievers hadn't yet gotten into Jin's possession. Tachikawa checked his pocket, finding that the pills were still there. He decided to give them to his rival when the teen came back.

A few hallways away, Jin was leaning against the wall, rubbing his aching head. The headache was mild, but Jin was exhausted, so it seemed worse than it really was.

Suddenly, Jin's head flew up. The teen swore he had seen movement at the end of the hallway. He stared at the spot for a moment before slowly and silently walking toward it. He soon was at the end of the hallway, and he peeked around the corner, but saw nothing. Confused, Jin started down the hallway, ignoring his instincts, which screamed 'trap' and 'danger'.

After getting about halfway down the hall, he suddenly dropped, narrowly missing a black projectile that flew through the space where he had just been standing. Rolling to his feet, exhaustion being swapped for adrenaline, Jin turned to see his attacker. He wasn't surprised to see a black figure shrouded in purple flames, bloodred lines spreading like lightning bolts across its chest and legs, just like Yuma's Black Trigger, but with a more dangerous look.

"So, you're the one who's been antagonizing my kouhai. Fair warning, I really don't appreciate it when people do that," Jin said almost nonchalantly, his voice tinged slightly with anger as his hand slipped into his pocket, fingers closing around his Trigger just as the assassin lunged again.

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A/N: Just a side note, I'm only going to be working for maybe the next two or three weeks until the place I work at gets things sorted out. It's a new place that just opened. After I'm done, updates will hopefully go back to being earlier like they were.


	21. Power Elite vs Assassin

A/N: I almost forgot it's Tuesday because there's no school this week, oops. Anyway, I got this chapter written, with some difficulty. My fight scene writing skills are about as good as my romance writing skills, and anyone who read Doppelganger knows I'm really bad at romance. Also, to clear up any misunderstandings that may have happened with my authors note last week, I will be posting chapters every week. Even though I've been working, I'll still be posting. That aside, sorry for any typos, errors, OOCness or overall crappy writing. I hope everyone had a good week, and I'll be back next we with another chapter :)

 **Warning - This chapter has a little** **bit** **of violence, so if you are bothered by that kind of thing, please be wary and don't upset yourself**

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Even without his Side Effect, Jin was still good at fighting. He dodged the assassin's attack as he activated his Trigger, a green flash enveloping his flesh-and-blood body as a Trion one took it's place. Jin let Scorpion form in his hands, just in time too, because he was barely able to block the next attack, which was aimed for his head. This assassin really wasn't planning on going easy on him.

The next attack was aimed at Jin's legs, and the teen barely jumped out of the way in time. Without his Side Effect, he hadn't seen it coming, just like when he'd been fighting Hyuse underground in the Second Invasion. Jin had been saved this time only because he caught a blur of movement in the corner of his eye, and had jumped on instinct.

Jin gave the assassin a smile, letting it know that he wasn't afraid. He wouldn't go down easy. In fact, he didn't plan on going down at all.

"If I take you out here, I won't have to worry about you hurting my cute little kouhai," the teen said, voicing his thoughts to his opponent. If the assassin's face was visible, Jin was sure he'd see a scowl. He knew he tended to get under people's skin when he wanted to. It was how he manipulated people to do what needed to be done in order to influence the future to his liking.

A clawed hand swiped at Jin's chest, and he blocked it with Scorpion, though he only used his left hand. He materialized a second blade in his right hand, which he swung at the assassin, who withdrew in a flash to avoid the small sword. Jin frowned. This assassin really was fast, and quite strong. He made a mental note not to block with only one hand again, given it had been a bit of struggle to keep the lethal claw-fingers away as he fought back.

With some distance between himself and the assassin, Jin decided to act a bit more offensively. He feinted going forward to the left enough for the assassin to move just a fraction of an inch before he threw Scorpion as hard as he could, aiming right for the assassin's heart. The blade did not hit its mark. Instead, it buried itself in the wall a few inches to the left of the assassin. Jin sighed an disappointment. A move like what he had just done would work on any Trion soldier, and even a few strong soldiers. He had used that attack on Tachikawa before, back when they did Rank Wars, and it had worked. However, this opponent was no Trion soldier or A-Rank agent. This was an assassin with a Black Trigger and more experience than Yuma or Jin himself. Not to mention Jin had been able to use his Side Effect every other time he tried his blade throwing attack. He'd always known that it would hit its target, and if he foresaw that it wouldn't, he didn't go through with the attack. Now that he didn't have his Side Effect, he had to rely only on his ability to read his opponent's moves and hope his attacks would be effective.

The assassin lunged for Jin again and the teen dodged, but either he was getting slower or the assassin was getting faster, because the punch clipped his elbow. The arm that was affected slammed back into the wall, causing Jin to go a little wide-eyed. He knew this assassin was strong, but he hadn't expected that much force.

Jin had gotten a little too caught up in his thoughts, and it caused him to take a blow to the stomach, which sent him flying down the hall. He hit the floor on his side and quickly recovered by rolling to his feet. He ran back toward the assassin, pushing away unnecessary thoughts and focusing on analyzing what he was up against. The assassin was taller than him, but rail thin. He'd want any attacks to be done horizontally, since that would give him a better chance of hitting. The assassin had claw-like fingers, and from a part of the wall that the claws had dragged over, Jin could tell that they were very sharp. The assassin's feet were long and also very sharp looking. They actually looked a bit like bird feet, very deadly bird feet. Then there was the oddest thing out of all the assassin's features, the cords that stemmed from its head, floating in the air like pieces of driftwood in the sea. The motions were slow, even a bit hypnotizing, and Jin wondered if their purpose was to distract an opponent, or if there was more to them.

When Jin reached the assassin, he swung Scorpion out as he suddenly dropped down, sliding across the floor on his knees. The assassin moved to dodge, but Jin's blades were too long for it to move horizontally out of the way in time, and it was too tall to move up and out of the blades' path. As Jin looked back, he was glad to see that he'd gotten a cut into the assassin's leg. It was shallow, but it was there. The assassin wasn't invincible, and Jin had successfully used it's height against it. While he couldn't do something like that all the time, it was a good surprise attack he could use in moderation.

However, a downside to the attack quickly made itself known to Jin. Trion began to leak from a cut on his cheek, which he likely received as he slid across the floor. While sliding, even though he had a better chance of successfully getting an attack in, he had very little room to dodge, and if the assassin chose to priorize attacking Jin over dodging, Jin could be in danger.

Just as Jin got to his feet, the assassin was in front of him again. Jin was able to block one of it's hands, but the other wrapped around his left arm, before cleanly slicing it off. Jin frowned again, then kicked the assassin hard enough that it stumbled, or more accurately, floated back a bit. Jin lunged forward, holding Scorpion out in front of him. It was a risky, greedy move, but it could end the fight in one shot. Unfortunately, the assassin knew what Jin intended to do, and it side stepped, before clawing Jin's side. Jin sighed in frustration before putting some distance between himself and his opponent once again.

"I'm persistent, aren't I? You're no rookie, though," the teen said, slightly annoyed. The assassin seemed to be getting faster and stronger with every attack, and Jin began wishing someone would come looking for him. Yuma or Tachikawa, preferably. He would even take Amo, despite the fact that he would face the risk of Amo accidentally attacking him as well as the assassin. It was a wonder no one had come to investigate what was going on, because Jin knew neither he or the assassin were being quiet.

Jin slid one of his feet back a bit, getting ready to spring forward. His eyes narrowed slightly as he watched the assassin carefully, looking for any type of response. He got one when the assassin suddenly stilled, leaving Jin to make the making the split-second decision whether or not to attack. The assassin could have just raised it's guard significantly, or lowered it, maybe to do some sort of special attack. There would be a risk in attacking, but waiting could mean passing up a huge opportunity. Jin decided that his best bet would be to attack, and if he noticed anything at all that seemed dangerous, he would stop. Unfortunately, he didn't even get to move.

The headache he'd been feeling before the fight suddenly returned, though it began to intensify. Jin knew what was coming next, and he wanting to slap himself. This was the worst time for a headache. It would be better for him to have one in front of the entirety of Border than in front of the assassin. Jin tried to fight the waves of pain, but that was like trying to still a raging ocean. The agent's hands shook as his vision was filled with spots. He barely registered dropping Scorpion before he fell to the ground, teeth clenched against the pain as images and voices erupted in his head. He saw Tachikawa staring at something with wide eyes, Chika crying, whispers of 'an attack', 'not life threatening' and 'dangerous'.

The assassin watched as his opponent suddenly collasped, eyes squeezed shut and teeth clenched. It wasn't quiet sure what was going on, but it's didn't care either. Yuichi Jin had been a persistent, difficult opponent as expected, and while the teen hadn't been able to do a ton of damage, he had been able to defend himself well. If the fight had continued much longer, there was a chance of back up arriving.

With slight wariness the assassin approached Jin. This could all be an act, but due to the fact that the teen's Trigger was laying out of reach made it seem like that was not the case. The assassin chose not to take any chances, and remembering that the Border Triggers had an escape function, opted to take out the Trigger rather than the Trion body. It picked up the small device from the ground, not giving it more than a single glance before bending it until the insides snapped in half. On the ground, Jin's body flashed as his real one appeared where the Trion one had been.

In Jin's head, the pain subsided enough for him to see, though that was just in time for him to notice the green light around him. The teen tensed, coming to a realization. He was back in his real body. Knowing he had to leave if he wanted to live, Jin moved to get up, but found he could not. One of the odd cord-like things that were connected to the assassin's head was wrapped around Jin's neck. It tugged as the assassin pulled Jin up off the floor until he was dangling a few inches off the ground. The brunette tried to pry the the cord away from his neck, but it got tighter the more he struggled.

Jin's vision began to become spotty again as black began to eat away at the edges. He choked, unable to breathe properly with the assassin's tight grip cutting off his airway. He glared at the assassin, and kicked out with the strength he could gather, nailing the assassin in the stomach. In returned, the assassin swung a clawed hand across his chest, only one finger out, cutting through the skin. The wound wasn't deep enough to kill, but Jin wouldn't be fighting back anymore. Said teen tensed, his mouth opening slightly as a sound tried to escape, but there was no air to push out more than a raspy 'tch'. Finishing the job, the assassin pulled out a glowing yellow syringe and plunged the needle into Jin's neck, causing the teen to jerk away a little. The assassin pushed the plunger home, emptying the contents of the syringe into Jin before pocketing it again.

When Jin's eyes drooped, the effects of the fast-acting sedative kicking in, the assassin unwound the cord and let him fall to the ground, face down. The assassin turned away and disappeared down the hallway, leaving Jin alone. The teen gasped for air, glad to be released, but the pain in his chest was horrible. He tried to reach for his phone in his pocket, but his arm refused to move. Using what energy he had left, the teen managed to grab the device from his pocket and move it into his line of vision. He went to his contacts, typing in a T, searching for someone who he knew would answer the phone, and who would be able to defend themself if the assassin came back. Tachikawa's name came up, and Jin went to click on it, but he could barely see. His fingers were shaking, and he was just barely able to touch the 'call' button before his hand dropped to the ground, all his strength gone.

Jin's eyes slid closed completely just as he young man on the other end of the call picked up. Jin heard a voice, but it was muffed, his sense of hearing slipping through his fingers like water as he fought a losing battle against the sedative.

When the voice on the other end paused, Jin choked out what he could, his voice no more than a weak whisper.

"T-Tach...ika-wa-s...an..."

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A/N: Sorry Jin, but I can't have you winning every fight.


	22. One man down, one man done

A/N: Two hours. This chapter ended up much longer than any others, and it took an hour longer than usual to edit it. I probably still missed some errors. Anyway, let's be glad I update on Tuesdays and not Mondays because my bus got in an accident on its way to my school so I got home an hour late. Weekly complaint about misfortunes I encounter aside, sorry for any OOCness, errors, typos and overall crappy writing. I hope I didn't screw this chapter up too bad, since I wasn't really sure how to write this chapter's bits involving Jin in particular. I hope everyone likes the chapter and I'll be back next week with another.

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An awkward silence had settled on the meeting room long ago, all of the men deciding to keep quiet about the very obvious elephant that was missing from the room. Shinoda, Kido and Tachikawa kept glancing at Rindo a bit expectantly, as if they believed the man was withholding information about the current issue. Each time he received a glance, the Tamakoma Director would simply shrug and divert his eyes.

Just a little over five minutes after the meeting was due to start, Kido sighed and finally broke the silence in the room.

"Rindo, where'd Jin go and when is he coming back? The meeting was supposed to have started already," the man said, sounding more than slightly annoyed. Rindo simply shook his head and pulled his cigarette from his mouth, staring at it as if it would give them the answers they needed.

"Honestly, I don't know why he's not back yet. He told me he had a bit of a headache from not getting much sleep last night, so he was going to step out for a moment," Rindo told the other's, recalling Jin's words from not long ago. Silence blanketed the room again as everyone thought over the four-eyed man's explanation.

"Maybe you should call him?" Shinoda recommended. Rindo nodded and reached for his phone when suddenly music filled the room. Tachikawa stiffened, and the others turned to look at him in confusion. Not making eye contact with anyone, the attacker reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, his ringtone suddenly much clearer without clothing muffling the phone's speakers.

"Ashita no Hikari?" Shinoda mumbled before glancing at Kido. The older man seemed just as confused at Tachikawa's lack of a plain ringtone, maybe a bit annoyed even, but both men kept quiet, since the ringtone wasn't related to the current issue.

"It's Jin," Tachikawa said with a frown, staring at his phone.

"Are you going to answer?" Rindo asked. Tachikawa nodded and clicked the 'accept call' button before putting the device to his ear.

"Jin? Where are you? The meeting was supposed to start almost ten minutes ago now, but we're all waiting on you. Kido-san needs you to use your Side Effect," the twenty-year old informed, his tone a bit annoyed as if he was complaining.

There was no response from the other end at first, though Tachikawa could hear raspy breathing. 'Is Jin running?' he wondered, though that theory blew up in his face when he heard his rival's voice.

"T-Tach...ika-wa-s...an..."

Jin's voice was weak and matched the raspy breathing he'd heard earlier. Tachikawa waited for Jin to say more, but the other end of the call was dead silent.

"Jin? Hey, Jin, you there? Jin?" he asked, a bit confused and a little more concerned. There was still no response. Tachikawa listened for a few more seconds before his concentration was broken by Kido.

"Is he not answering?" the man asked. Tachikawa shook his head, taking his phone away from his ear. He looked down at the screen with a frown, wondering what in the world could be going on. Then it clicked. The attacker's head flew up, his eyes wide in surprise.

"Do you think...?" he trailed off, allowing the others in the room to realize what he meant. Eyebrows went up as Shinoda, Rindo and Kido caught on to what Tachikawa was saying. Rindo's cigarette fell out if his mouth and dropped on the table as he planted his hands on the flat surface and stood, the strained look on his face similar to the expression he'd had way back when Osamu had told the higher ups of Border Yuma's name.

"Mikumo-kun was attacked not long ago. It's possible that Jin may have encountered the assassin," he said, voicing everyone's thoughts. Kido nodded to the door, and he and Shinoda got to their feet. The four men in the room jogged out the door before splitting up, all with the same idea. Kido and Shinoda went left while Rindo and Tachikawa went right in their search for Jin. All of them hoped they'd find the teen eating rice crackers somewhere, having forgotten about the meeting or in the middle of a prank on them. No one thought that was what was going on though. While Jin could be a bit sarcastic and playful at times, he was also serious, and wouldn't pull a prank during the current situation.

As Kido and Shinoda searched the left side of the floor, they found nothing. It was a bit relieving, but at the same time, they knew the others many have already found Jin. However. Rindo and Tachikawa weren't having much luck either. The two had decided to stay closer together, since Rindo didn't have a Trigger. If the assassin showed up, he would be a sitting duck. Tachikawa on the other hand would be able to defend them both long enough for them to escape.

After Tachikawa and Rindo split up at the fourth fork in the hall, they began to believe that Jin was on the other side of the building. That was not the case though, and Tachikawa ended up being the unfortunate one who found that out. The attacker turned a corner, his eyes scanning the hallway quickly before he saw blue on the floor. Doing a double-take, Tachikawa noticed that it was Jin, but not how he had looked around twenty minutes ago before he left.

Jin lay facedown on the ground, unmoving. His fingers rested on his phone, which lay abandoned next to the teen's head. Tachikawa quickly noticed Jin's Trigger lying a few feet away on the floor, seemingly undamaged. Concerned and confused, Tachikawa turned and yelled over his shoulder.

"Rindo!"

Tachikawa ran for Jin, dropping down so he was kneeling next to his rival. He was close enough that he could see Jin's face now, the teen's head turned about 90° to the right, resting against the ground. His energetic icy blue eyes were half lidded, long eyelashes veiling what pale eyelids didn't cover. Jin's mouth was partially open, colorless lips dotted with red, and after leaning closer, Tachikawa could hear the harsh gasps of breath his rival was taking.

"Jin!" Tachikawa turned to see Rindo running toward him, the man's eyebrows furrowed in a mixture of emotion. Rindo stopped next to Tachikawa, kneeling down as he quickly looked over his agent, his pupils pausing in their movement as they locked on Jin's face. Tachikawa let his eyes wander and he continued to survey the damage. He didn't think Jin looked too bad until he saw an odd shadow on the teen's neck. Confused, he pulled Jin's collar back and brushed away a few stray hairs before tensing. Rindo followed Tachikawa's line of vision, his hands curling into fists when he noticed what the attacker was looking at. The beginnings of thin bruises encircling Jin's neck a few times were beginning to appear.

Rindo's eyes trailed further toward the ground as he looked to see how far down Jin's neck the bruise went. However, he got more than he bargained for when his eyes landed on a color that stuck out like a sore thumb against the pale floor.

"Tachikawa," Rindo said, his voice a little strained. Tachikawa looked at the man next to him, then his eyes locked onto the spot Rindo was staring at. Sharing the same thought, the two placed their hands lightly on Jin's back, side and shoulders before carefully rolling him over. Both men inhaled sharply at the sight they were greeted with, Rindo whipping out his phone and dialing a familiar number.

"Kido, it's Rindo. Get Shinoda and go to the southeastern outermost hallway. We've got a problem," he said before hanging up. The man looked to Tachikawa, who was on his knees, hands pressing on the seeping wound on Jin's chest. A line of crimson cut through the sea of white that was the teen's shirt, slowly turning the pure color to red.

Rindo winced sympathetically before turning to where he had spotted Jin's Trigger. It looked fine and Rindo frowned, leaning over to grab the small device. Curling his fingers around the cool exterior, his fingers brushed over an abnormality. Upon closer examination, Rindo noticed a crack around the Trigger's middle. Jin's opponent, likely the assassin, had broken his Trigger.

"Rindo! Tachikawa!" The two men turned when their names were called to see Kido and Shinoda running toward them, the two stumbling mid-step when they caught sight of the teen on the floor. The two knelt down next to Jin opposite Rindo and Tachikawa, taking stock of his injuries. Kido pulled out his phone, punching the buttons angrily before putting it to his ear.

As Kido informed medical personnel from the infirmary of the situation, Rindo showed Shinoda Jin's broken Trigger. The younger off the two nodded grimly, taking the cracked weapon and putting it in his pocket before looking to Tachikawa.

"You doing okay with that?" Shinoda asked with a wince as his eyes landed on Jin's crimson-painted shirt. Tachikawa nodded.

"Yeah, but he's still losing blood," the agent reported, pressing a little harder on the wound, though it didn't change anything. Tachikawa's hands were already coated with red. The wound looked bad, and Jin was bleeding a bit too much for comfort.

Eyebrows furrowed in concern, Rindo stared at the unconsious agent who he was quite fond of. He cared about all his agents, especially because of the home-like atmosphere Tamakoma had, which made the agents seem like one big oddball family. Osamu's mild injuries had bothered Rindo enough, but this...the assassin was playing rough. Something had changed, but Rindo couldn't focus enough to even think about what that factor might be. Instead he waited with the others for medical personnel to come get Jin.

-000-

About an hour after Jin was brought to the infirmary, Rindo and Tachikawa, who had been waiting for news on the agent, were told that he was alright. Rindo, who was on the phone with Yuma, quickly ended the conversation and turned to hear about his agent's condition. Rindo had told Yuma to bring Chika and Osamu to HQ immediately because something had happened, and that Kido gave authorization for the use of his Black Trigger if needed.

A nurse led Rindo and Tachikawa down the hallway, stopping in front of a door labeled 'NC05' before turning to face them.

"Jin-kun will be fine, fortunately. His chest wound looks much worse than it was. He lost a bit too much blood from it, so he needed a small blood bag, but in reality it's not life-threatening. We also found that there was little damage done to his neck, nothing to worry about. Whoever hurt him must have had some kind of cord. They managed to give him a pretty good bruise, and I suspect they had his airway cut off up to shortly before he lost consciousness, since his breathing was a bit irregular when we brought him in. This bruise actually helped though, since it highlighted something we wouldn't have noticed otherwise on the side of his neck," the nurse explained. Tachikawa and Rindo both raised their eyebrows.

"What was it?" Rindo asked.

"A puncture mark. We took a sample of his blood and found a unknown drug mixed with a sedative, which is probably what ultimately knocked him out. We don't know what this mystery drug does, but there seems to be nothing wrong so far. He's shown no signs of a reaction that we can find. At this point, I think we'll have to wait until the sedative wears off to find out what the unknown drug was meant to do," the woman said. Rindo and Tachikawa nodded, then the nurse turned and opened the door.

The woman let the two men enter, making sure they were well inside before pulling the door closed behind them. They were in Jin's room in the infirmary, and the teen himself lay on the single cot in the room. Jin was still unconsious, and he had an IV in one arm while a blood bag was attached to his other. He still looked paler than normal, but not nearly as bad as before. The agent had on a powder blue robe in place of his bloodied clothes, and the slightly open top revealed white bandages wrapped around his chest.

"Ow," Tachikawa muttered, stating the obvious. Rindo nodded. The two approached the cot, both standing on the right side. They looked over the unconscious agent in front of them, then something on Jin's neck caught Rindo's eye

"Is this the puncture mark she was talking about?" he asked, pointing to the spot. Tachikawa leaned forward a little and squinted, not seeing it at first, though when he noticed, he frowned.

"I think so, but what's that yellow? The nurse never said anything about it," Tachikawa said. Rindo looked at the mark and just faintly saw golden yellow lines stemming out from the puncture in a web-like pattern, fading the further it got from its origin. The two men exchanged confused looks before their eyes returned to Jin's face.

"I'll text Kido-san what we know, since he wants me to stay on guard here, so I can't just go tell him myself. At least with more information, he and Shinoda-san can fill up the assassin's file as much as possible," Tachikawa said out of the blue, putting his serious face back on as he plopped down in a chair and pulled out his phone to send the text. Rindo nodded and sat down in another one of the chairs in the room, his eyes still on his unconscious agent.

-000-

Yuma, Osamu and Chika weren't sure why they were at HQ, since Rindo had been pretty vague when he called, but they got a bad feeling when Rindo texted them, telling them to come to the infirmary. Concerned about their boss, the three wondered if maybe the assassin had changed its sights, attacking random Border agents rather than stalking Tamakoma agents.

The three made their way to the all too familiar infirmary, Yuma and Chika remembering seeing Osamu there after the Second Invasion, the teen comatose after barely slipping away from death's permanent grip. Though when the three were led to a room, they saw something they had not at all expected. Jin, one of the strongest people they knew, with the best Side Effect in Border that they knew of, lay unconscious on a cot

He was pale, his usual powerful vibe gone. There was an IV in one of his arms and a blood bag connected to the other. Yuma's sharp eyes noticed what looked like a web of glowing gold on the older teens neck, and it gave him a bad feeling. The weirdest thing had to be the fact that Jin lay still, since his kouhai rarely even saw him sit and stop moving.

"Jin-san?" Osamu said, sounding confused. He and Chika hesitantly approached Jin's cot with wide eyes, as if they didn't really believe what they were seeing. Yuma on the other hand hung back at the door. His face was angled toward the ground, his eyes hidden by his snowy hair.

"The assassin did this?" he asked. Rindo sighed.

"We believe so," the man confirmed. Yuma looked very similar to when Osamu had been attacked, and Rindo was worried the young Neighbor would run off and try to fight the assassin, now that Jin wasn't conscious to stop him, and no one else in the room had both the trust Yuma had in Jin and the strength needed to stop him. However, Yuma surprised his boss ans stayed, joining his friends by Jin's cot. Though his piercing red eyes were now visible, he avoided actual eye contact, not wanting anyone else to find what he was thinking.

On he outside he might look a little upset, but in his mind, he had only one thought. That thought was revenge. Yuma resented the assassin for inadvertently killing his father, but he wouldn't have gone out of his way to fins it and fight it just for that. Now though... now he was going to make sure the assassin didn't live to see the eyes of its next victim.

Attacking Jin was the last straw.

* * *

A/N: I closed the poll, and saw that Yuma won by a lot. Since this multi-chapter still has a few more weeks to go, I think I'll make a Yuma-centric one-shot which should be my next post, hopefully it'll cover up the disaster that is Compromised. I'm thinking the next multi-chapter I do should be centered around someone different, but that's not final yet. Tell me your thoughts, what kind of thing you all want to see, and I'll probably put up a new poll at some point using what I got from you guys.


	23. Serious buisness

A/N: A shorter chapter, I'm sorry. I also hate to say it, but I won't be uploading a chapter next week because I have exams and I really need to study, especially because one of my teachers is really bad at his job. Anyway, sorry for any OOCness, typos, errors and crappy writing overall. I hope you all like this chapter, even though it's a bit short. I almost forgot about the meeting, though Jin's 'incident' only postponed it, rather than completely canceling it. Enjoy the chapter and I'll be back in two weeks after I hopefully pass my exams :)

* * *

Kido, Shinoda and Rindo sat around the meeting room table, trying not to think of the two agents who were missing from the room. It had been a full twenty-four hours since Jin was attacked, and the teen was still out cold. Yuma, Chika and Osamu had visited the unconscious agent multiple times, sometimes together and sometimes by themselves. The three were now back at Tamakoma under the guard of Kazama squad, who knew only that someone had put Jin in the infirmary, and that there was a chance Mikumo squad could be targeted. Kido, Shinoda and Rindo had decided it was best that Kazama squad didn't know the truth, and Kido had ordered them not to ask questions, since Chika and Osamu were very intimidated by Kazama and would likely answer immediately if he said anything. As for Tachikawa, he was still in the infirmary watching Jin to make sure the assassin didn't come back to finish him off.

"The assassin must be looking for someone if it's coming out and attacking people," Shinoda said, a grim look on his face. Kido shook his head.

"We can't be sure that the assassin is targeting a single person. It could be the entirety of Tamakoma, or even Border, that it's after," the scar-faced man reminded. It was true that they really had no solid evidence on the assassin's intentions and/or targets, except for the fact that it mostly only appeared in front of Tamakoma agents. That couldn't actually be considered solid evidence though, since the assassin had appeared in sight of Tachikawa once, and in Border HQ, where it could easily have been spotted by anyone, twice.

"Mikumo was attacked just a few days ago, wasn't he? There were no attacks before that, and neither Mikumo nor Jin were killed, so I believe it's safe to assume this assassin has a specific target," Shinoda argued, looking to the third man in the room for support.

Rindo stared at the wall, a cigarette barely avoiding being crushed by his tightening jaw. The man looked pale, and stress lines marred his forehead, an unusual look for someone who was usually more care-free. Neither Shinoda nor Kido had a doubt in their mind about the Tamakoma Branch Director's feelings. First, Rindo had learned about a future where Osamu was attacked by the assassin, and had been unable to keep it from happening. Next, he sent his own son away from Tamakoma to keep him safe from the possibility of the assassin trying to target the defenseless boy. On top of that, Jin had gone and gotten into a fight, landing himself in the infirmary with an unknown drug running through his veins.

"Yes, it was just a few days ago. He seems to have mostly healed already, which is good. We're going to need all the manpower we can get if the assassin plans on attacking more. I'm sure Jin knew that too, he's a smart kid, so I just don't get why..." Rindo trailed off, slipping into his thoughts as he spoke. Despite the man not finishing his sentence, Kido and Shinoda knew what he ment.

"You don't know why Jin would take the risk of fighting the assassin by himself," Shinoda finished for his colleague. Rindo nodded, inhaling deeply before letting out a long sigh.

"Rindo, you told me awhile ago that Jin's Side Effect was being disturbed. Something wasn't working right. It's possible Jin had foreseen the assassin being in Border HQ and went to fight because he saw himself winning. In reality, that future he saw may have been changed by this malfunction in his Side Effect, causing him to see himself win when he actually was going the lose," Kido theorized. Shinoda and Rindo looked to the older man in surprise, though Rindo's expression quickly slipped back into the a stressed look of defeat.

"Still, he's smart enough to know he shouldn't fight someone who's armed with a Black Trigger and as dangerous and skilled as the assassin without assistance from another agent, or at least letting someone know what he's doing, even if his Side Effect shows him winning," the man pointed out. The room fell into silence.

"We'll have to wait until Jin wakes up, then we can ask him what he was planning. We can also bring Yuma along and use his Lie Detector to make sure we get the truth. If Jin has become reckless enough to stick his neck out based on what he knew could be a mistake on his Side Effect's part, then we'll have to keep an eye on him so he doesn't get himself killed. There is always the chance that it was a coincidence though. Jin may not have foreseen the encounter at all," Shinoda said, summing up the topic of conversation. Rindo rubbed his head in attempts of combating the stress-induced headache that had been throbbing non-stop behind his tired eyes all day.

"If only Yugo-san had made it back from Neighborhood. He probably would have had a solution for us, and maybe he would've been strong enough to beat the assassin. He'd be stronger than even Shinoda if he hadn't died, I'm sure," the man said. Shinoda nodded in agreement while Kido stiffened.

"Yuma might not know what's going on, but even Replica might have had a solution. I never spoke with him much, though I know from the meeting about what Neighbor nation was going to attack us in the Second Invasion that he didn't tell Yuma every single thing he knew. I've heard Yuma say that Yugo-san wanted him to figure things out on his own, too," Shinoda added.

"Kuga..." Kido said, voice low. Rindo and Shinoda both assumed the older man was talking about Yugo, but he wasn't. Rindo's words had reminded Kido of something he'd said to Tachikawa awhile ago, toward the beginning of the assassin issue.

 _"It's possible that Yuma Kuga is very well aware of the Humanoid Neighbor's power and purpose, and that he is trying to keep us, Border, out of the situation. It's possible that he is being hunted by the same thing that attacked him before, four years ago."_

Kido immediately shook his head, ridding his mind of the thought. No. That had been a possibility before, but the assassin had no reason to attack Jin and Osamu if it was only after Yuma. Even the likelihood of the assassin being after a single person was low, since most anyone in Border wouldn't stand a chance if even Jin was nearly killed. If the assassin was after a single person, it would have killed them already, and it wouldn't be attacking agents just to injure them. Black Trigger or not, Yuma wasn't immediately to be considered an extremely difficult target. Kido knew the boy believed that he could possibly lose to Jin in a fight if the latter was wielding Fujin, even if Yuma had the aid of Replica on his side. Yuma was not invincible, and the assassin surely knew that, with how long it had been in Mikado. Plus, if it had taken Yuma out once, it surely wouldn't be so hesitant to do it again. There was no reason why it would wait so long to strike if Yuma was the target. Then there was the fact that if he knew anything about the assassin's intentions or abilities, Yuma would have said something after Osamu and Jin's attacks. There was no way Yuma would withhold information that could keep his comrades safe. While Kido didn't exactly trust the boy, he knew that much. The Second Invasion had been proof of it.

"That aside, there's no use pondering what those who are lost might know. Rindo, have you made contact with Tamakoma-1 recently? They could potentially be targets as well, and they're more isolated than any other agents right now, being outside Mikado," Kido said, changing the course of his thoughts as well as the topic of conversation. Rindo nodded, and Kido noticed the younger man's eyes narrowing into a glare, though it only lasted a second.

"I spoke with them yesterday after Jin was attacked. They weren't happy about being so far away, and Konami-chan asked to have a word with you, Kido-san. Anger aside, they're relieved that Jin is okay. They also have found nothing suspicious in Shizuku," Rindo informed. He decided to leave out Konami's threats of burying her axe in Kido's head for making Rindo send them out, and her claims that she was going to punch Jin hard enough to set his Side Effect straight when she got back. She was clearly upset that her comrade had done something so stupid. While Reiji, Kyosuke and Shiori had similar feelings, the three were much better at filtering the thoughts that moved from their minds to their mouths. Instead of blowing up the Konami, they had agreed to keep watch for the assassin when they got back, that is if the issue wasn't resolved by then.

Shinoda glanced accordingly at Kido, who attempted to ignore the stew of negative emotion that radiated from his colleagues like strong cologne. He knew they would blame him if something happened to the agents in Shizuku, since he had been the one who made sure they were sent out. Kido cleared his throat.

"Alright then. We'll continue this conversation once Jin wakes up an explains himself. He may have some new information for us as well," he said, deciding to end the meeting there. The three men in the room got to their feet and headed for the door.

"Be careful," Shinoda said suddenly, causing the other two in the room to stop and look at him. Shinoda was looking down at his palm, which held his Trigger. The younger man shifted his gaze to his colleagues, making sure he had their attention.

"Hm?" Rindo said questioningly, wondering what Shinoda meant. Sure they all needed to watch over their agents, that was obvious. Maybe the man thought the assassin would target a larger Border figure next time, such as a Director. In that case, Kido and Rindo were in much more danger than Shinoda, since neither of them fought anymore. Shinoda narrowed his eyes.

"The assassin left Mikumo with light injuries, and it seemed to have let Jin go as well, but with more to show for their fight. I have a feeling that whoever is next won't be as lucky."


	24. Awakening

A/N: I survived exams, somehow, I'm not entirely sure. However, even the one week hiatus of this story threw me off so much, and this chapter literally took me five days to actually get sort of right just because the writer's block. Thankfully school was cancelled today, which left me with some more time to work on this chapter. This story seems like it likes being problematic for me. Anyway, sorry for OOCness, errors, typos and overall crappy writing. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and I hope I didn't make it too friendshippy. After all, I think those two are probably good friends with the whole mostly-hateless rivalry =3=

* * *

Beeping. That was the first thing Jin became aware of as he slowly rose through the numbing, murky ocean of oblivion that was unconsciousness. Not long after that, he started feeling an ache in his chest, kind of like someone had punched him, but different. Next was a feeling of tightness around his throat, making it harder to breath. One thing after another was processed by his waking brain.

After what could have been minutes, hours, or even days, Jin couldn't tell, he could feel almost everything. He was laying down, and there was something on top of him, something light. Whatever he was laying on was comfortable, though his body itself was not. The ache in his chest that he had felt earlier remained, and the tightness on his throat hadn't gone away either. He was now also aware of a a cold feeling that stemmed from a spot on his neck, going through his veins and fading once is got a certain distance from the source, though the feeling seemed to go away as quickly as he'd noticed.

Slowly, Jin opened his eyes a sliver, though he snapped them shut against the blinding light that assaulted his pupils. After the ache disappeared from his eyes, the teen tried again, slowly blinking his eyes open to let them adjust to the harsh light.

As his eyes adjusted, the white that had flooded Jin's vision disappeared. The plain ceiling of Border HQ came into view, along with a fluorescent light right above him.

Curious as to where he was, Jin glanced to the right, where he found the source of the beeping. A heart monitor. Why was there one of those?

The sound of a page being turned caught Jin's attention, and the teen looked to his left, but only saw a wall. Slowly, still waking up, Jin turned his head just a little, enough that his eyes landed on the other person in the room. Tachikawa sat in a chair a few feet away from Jin's bed, eyes on a book. Jin squinted and saw that it was a manga, Prince of Stride, one he'd never heard of.

Jin's eyes shifted from the book to his rival's face, and he noticed that Tachikawa's jaw was tense. The older attacker had the startings of dark circles under his eyes, like he hadn't slept in awhile. Jin stared at Tachikawa, searching for any clues of what might of happened that would have landed him where he was now, but got nothing. He did notice that Tachikawa was spending a lot of time on the page he was reading though, and Jin knew that the twenty-year old wasn't one to take a lot of time looking at the pictures in manga. Instead, Tachikawa always tended to look over them quickly and skim the dialouge before moving on to the next page. It was likely there was something on the young man's mind.

Suddenly, the book snapped shut, and stormy gray eyes locked on icy blue ones.

"You look like hell."

Jin blinked slowly, finally waking up enough for his brain to process Tachikawa's words.

"I'm flattered," the brunette replied sarcastically, though his tone was a bit dull and his voice was somewhat scratchy, making him cough. His coughing made his chest ache more, and the tightness on his throat seemed to squeeze a bit more. Thankfully, the fit ended quickly.

"If you can still be a sarcastic ass, then you must not be hurt too bad," Tachikawa pointed out, getting up from his chair and walking closer so Jin wouldn't have to turn his head to see him. Jin wasn't sure if he liked or hated the gesture, because while he no longer had to strain his neck by turning his head further and further to the side, he was now looking up at his rival, who was suddenly annoyingly tall. Tachikawa picked up on Jin's annoyance and smirked triumphantly, giving the two a sense of normalcy despite the situation.

Tachikawa's smirk faded quickly though, his lips turning down into a small frown.

"Do you remember anything? Fighting the assassin?" he asked, confronting the seriousness of the current situation that Tamakoma Branch and Border's Directors were in. Jin fixed his rival with a quizzical look, then his expression suddenly changed and he shut his eyes, exhaling deeply as the memories suddenly returned, as if Tachikawa's words had broken a seal that had been withholding them.

The past events flashed through Jin's mind like the future did when his Side Effect went berserk, but without the headache. The meeting, stepping out of the room for a minute, the constant throb in his head, his encounter with the assassin, managing to hold him own, the horrible headache, being released from his defective Side Effect's suffocating hold only to find himself in the assassin's clutches, that odd cord cutting off his airway, a claw slicing open his chest, the syringe, then finally nothing. He had fought the assassin, and he had lost.

When Jin opened his eys again, he saw that Tachikawa wasn't looking at him. The older attacker had his eyes fixated on the wall, and his face was blank. The air in the room had completely shifted into something tense.

"Do you feel like explaining why you thought it was a good idea to take the assassin on by yourself?" Tachikawa asked, his voice quiet and serious, deadly. Jin took a second just to stare, keeping his reaction internal. It was rare for Tachikawa to be serious, and Jin was sure he'd never see his rival this serious before, even during the Second Invasion.

Tachikawa's gaze moved to Jin, causing the teen to tense and turn his head the other way, diverting his eyes in discomfort. Usually Jin stood his ground in a staring battle, but at the moment he was on the losing side and he knew it. It was obvious that Tachikawa was in no way amused. In fact, he sounded angry, and his eyes had an intensity to them that Jin had last seen years ago when the elder had found he wasn't compatible to Fujin

"I didn't foresee the assassin being there," Jin stated simply. Tachikawa sighed.

"Are you sure you didn't? Is it possible that you foresaw the fight and saw yourself winning, so you went to fight by yourself without saying anything, even though you knew your Side Effect was off? That's what the Directors are thinking," the older of the two said, his tone still serious. It was Jin's turn to sigh. He was tired and everything from thinking to moving to speaking hurt and exhausted him. He didn't feel like getting into an argument at the moment, despite the fact that Tachikawa had every right to be a bit pissed. Jin was a wild card at times and everyone knew it, so Tachikawa's accusations were well warranted.

"I didn't foresee it. My Side Effect was worse off than any of you knew, even Rindo-san. For awhile before the meeting, it was almost completely busted. I couldn't look into futures no matter how hard I tried, I'd only get a headache. I had a headache almost 24/7 from trying to force my Side Effect, but that was the least of my problems. At times I'd get really strong headaches that made it hard to even stay on my feet. I'd see random bits and pieces of the future during those, and that was the only time I foresaw anything. I left the meeting because I had a headache that was a bit worse than usual. I thought I was going to have a huge headache, but I didn't want it to happen in the middle of the meeting room and cause more problems. I ran into the assassin by chance, and I fought it because I didn't want it to keep coming after Border agents. I was doing fine for awhile, but then I had one of those nasty headaches. The next thing I knew, the assassin had broken my Trigger and I couldn't even move. It had a syringe full of something glowing, and I passed out after I called you," Jin explained, recounting how his Side Effect had blown up in his face before nearly getting him killed.

Tachikawa thought over Jin's story, eyes lingering on the injured teen who was still looking away. It had been stupid to take the assassin on by himself, especially when Border was being so cautious about the issue, and Jin knew that had it been the other way around, he'd be pretty pissed of at Tachikawa. He should have at least called someone before fighting rather than after he was defeated. After all, if the assassin had been targeting someone else who was attending the meeting, Jin's actions could have left them with one last person to defend them, which could have lead to injury or worse.

"Jin."

Jin turned his head back to look Tachikawa in the eye.

"At least do everyone a favor and don't nearly get yourself killed again. It wasn't fun finding getting a phone call just to hear you dying on the other end, and neither was finding you bleeding out in the hallway. Blood doesn't come out of clothes easily, you know. Your stuff was beyond saving, and my coat still has blood on it, you just can't see it since the material is dark. I'm pretty sure you took a few years off of Rindo's life as well, and your kouhai looked ready to cry when they came to see you. For awhile I thought the Neighbor kid was going to go on a killing spree, by the look on his face," Tachikawa said. His face wasn't as hard as it had been before, the older attacker's anger gone. "While you having some massive headache in the middle of the meeting room would no doubt have caused a problem, it wouldn't be as stressful as wondering if you were going to die was. The last thing we need right now is for someone to die, especially someone with a Side Effect that Border depends heavily on."

Jin nodded, then Tachikawa turned around and stretched his back, stepping toward the chair he'd previously occupied.

"I hope you're comfortable. Kido ordered the doctors to keep you here an extra night to make sure you weren't affected by some poison or whatever could have bee in that syringe, and I'm stuck as your babysitter. Hopefully if the assassin comes back for you, I'll have better luck," the twenty-year old said, his tone a bit lighter now. Jin swore that Tachikawa even sounded a bit excited at the thought of fighting the very thing that had taken down two Border agents already, and wondered how he was so good as switching gears so quickly.

"That syringe didn't have poison in it," Jin informed suddenly as something clicked in his mind, catching Tachikawa's attention.

"How do you know? The scientists here analyzed your blood and found a sedative and an unknown drug," Tachikawa said, turning back to face Jin, his slight excitement gone. Jin nodded, shifting on his bed. He slid his elbow back, propping himself up on his forearm and attempting to sit up as he spoke.

"Remember I said I had a headache constantly in the days before the meeting from trying to force my Side Effect? That headache is gone, and earlier I tried to look into your future when you were reading, but I saw nothing. I didn't even get a headache. I tried again a few other times, but there was nothing. The assassin probably knew I could see the future and wanted to make sure I didn't get in the way of its plans. It's been around long enough to have figured out some useful stuff. I think Four-Eyes was attacked as bait to draw the target out, and I was a problem. The unknown drug the scientists found? I'm pretty sure it took away my Side Effe- tch!" Jin explained, his words interrupted at the end by a pained noise he hadn't been able to hold back as the throb in his chest turned to a sharp pinch when he tried to sit upright.

Tachikawa looked at his rival with eyes slightly widened by surprise, processing the other's words. He recovered quickly though, and nodded.

"I'll let Kido know," he said, putting a hand on Jin's shoulder and giving him a slight nudge. "Now lay back down. You'll aggravated your chest wound by moving, and if you rip the stitches, I'll get yelled at," Tachikawa added. Jin sighed before laying back down, hiding a wince. The teen let out a long breath and blinked, suddenly feeling exhausted. His eyes burned, and the feeling only intensified every time he closed them.

Tachikawa noticed Jin's sudden weariness and moved back to his chair, sitting down and picking up his manga.

"Get some sleep, you looked like you were about to drop during the meeting, and you still don't look much better. That sedative from the assassin's attack probably hasn't worn off yet, either. It put you out for a whole day already," he said.

Normally, Jin would have been surprised about something like that, but at the moment he was too tired to react. Instead, he let his eyes slip shut, not fighting yet another battle that he would lose. The sooner he was released from the infirmary, the sooner he could end this problem with the assassin once and for all, for the sake of Border, the people of Mikado and his own kouhai. He just hoped nothing happened before he was able to fight again, though he had a nasty feeling that something would.

 _'Don't do something that'll get you hurt again, Yuma'_

* * *

A/N: I put up a poll for fun regarding Jin's loss of his Side Effect, so if you want to vote on what you think happens with his Side Effect later on, go ahead, I want to see what you guys think I'll do.


	25. Revelations and running out of time

A/N: I keep forgetting what day of the week it is =3= someone throw some ice water at me. I think Rindo could use some ice water too at this point, or a vacation, or both. Sorry Rindo. Anyway, sorry for any typos, OOCness, errors and overall crappy writing. I also apologize because I've been procrastinating posting the Yuma one-shot I meant to upload a few weeks ago. Maybe I'll get that posted this week, maybe. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and I'll be back next week with another. That is unless I start procrastinating on this story too because it's nearing its end *que existential crisis*

* * *

Tamakoma was far too quiet. It's usual inhabitants always seemed to be making some sort of noise, whether it was Yotaro ordering Raijinmaru to go to this room and that room, Konami growling at Kyosuke when he tricked her, or the oven beeping as Reiji cooked meat pies. Now though, the only noises were the occasional creaky floorboards and stairs protesting when weight settled on them.

Kazama squad was on alert, watching 360° of their surroundings. Kikuchihara had his hair pulled back in a pony tail, and he sat on the floor in the living area, leaning against the wall as he listened intently. Utagawa was patrolling outside, wander the roof as he kept watch for anyone and anything trying to get into the building. Kazama stood in the hallway where the rooms of the Tamakoma-2 agents were, watching the doors. All three agents were in their rooms, so as long as nothing got passed Kazama, they would be safe. At least that's what Kazama squad was thinking. They didn't know just how skilled and stealthy their opponent was. The assassin would be able to effortlessly get in through a window, and no one would notice.

It was halfway through the day after Jin's attack when Utagawa spotted movement. He materialized Scorpion in his hand, then squinted at the incoming being. Utagawa couldn't tell who is was, but as the person got closer, he was able to make out rectangular glasses, spiky, dark hair and a suit. The teen on the roof raised his hand to his ear.

"Kazama-san, Kikuchihara, Rindo-san is headed in," he told his team mates through their comms, letting them know that Rindo was not an enemy infiltrating the building. The last thing they needed was for Kikuchihara to hear someone coming and accidentally shishkabob the Director of Tamakoma Branch.

When Rindo walked into the building, he headed straight for the living area, where he knew Kikuchihara was. Kazama squad had taken up their positions the previous day when they had first been sent as guards, and had not changed where they were, nor did they plan to unless someone got through their current setup.

In the living area, Rindo greeted Kikuchihara with a nod, wearing a grim look. It was the same one that seemed to have plastered itself permanently to his face days ago.

"Kikuchihara-kun, could you ask Kazama to send Mikumo squad down here?" he asked. Normally, Kikuchihara would say something along the lines of 'go get them yourself,' though he was talking to one of his superiors. Even if Rindo didn't have direct authority over him, the man was still higher up on the chain of command. Plus, the look on Rindo's face, along with the current situation, left Kikuchihara with no desire to let his sharp tongue loose. The teen nodded, getting to his feet and lifting his hand to his comm.

"Kazama-san, Rindo-san asked if you could send Mikumo squad down," he said. There was no response, though a few moments later, Osamu and Chika walked into the living area, followed by Kazama. Rindo looked at his two agents before frowning.

"Where's Yuma-kun?" he asked before Kikuchihara tensed. The teen looked behind himself to see Yuma standing their, still and silent as if he'd been there all along.

"Be louder next time. Ninjas make more noise than you do," Kikuchihara said in his usual monotone voice, pointing his finger accusingly at the Neighbor behind him. Yuma didn't respond, and he showed no sign that he had even heard the teen. Instead he moved to stand next to Osamu, not even a squeak of protest from the floor or the soft thump of footfalls echoing through the room. It was a bit creepy actually, even for Osamu, who had known Yuma longer than anyone else in the room.

Rindo cleared his throat and sighed. The meeting with Shinoda and Kido had been pushed back a day from its original date, and he had just finished it not long ago. It was as he was leaving that Kido contacted him and told him that Jin had woken up momentarily, and revealed some very interesting and somewhat alarming facts.

"Jin woke up briefly today. I didn't get to talk to him, but Tachikawa did. Jin himself is fine, but he'll be kept overnight to make sure he wasn't poisoned. Anyway, we originally thought Jin's encounter had been planned by him. With his Side Effect, it only made sense that he would have foreseen what was going to happen and gone to fight thinking he'd win. However, Tachikawa learned that we were wrong. Jin's Side Effect was more defective than we thought. The things he saw weren't delayed for a few hours, or changed to something that wasn't actually a possible future. As it turns out, his Side Effect never worked at all. Whenever he tried using it, he'd get bad headaches, and he was at the point that he always had some kind of headache. The only time he saw any of the future was when he had headaches he described as so bad he couldn't stay on his feet, or something along those lines. He'd see random bits of the future, and it overwhelmed him. Apparently, he had been doing well during the fight, but then his Side Effect activated and gave him one of those bad headaches, disabling him long enough for his Trigger to be broken and for him to be captured," Rindo explained. Osamu and Chika were wide-eyed with surprise, trying to process what they had been told. Next to them, Yuma was lost in thought.

 _'Was it the assassin that was messing up his Side Effect before? I've been a bit unsure whenever I use my own, something seemed a bit off. Plus, Chika never noticed the assassin with her Side Effect. Jin-san said he already couldn't see my future or things related to the assassin when it first showed up, so maybe his Side Effect only got worse because of how long the assassin was around, or maybe because he tried to use it when it wasn't working right. I don't think the assassin made it worse, or the same probably would have happened to other people with Side Effects. Either way, I'm sure it was the assassin.' It had to be the assassin. There was no way this was all a coincidence._

"Unfortunately, when Jin lost the fight, he was injected with something. It was a mixture of a sedative and something Border couldn't recognize. Just before falling asleep today, Jin told Tachikawa that his headaches were completely gone, but so was just Side Effect. Whatever was in that injection took away Jin's Side Effect. Temporarily or permanently, we don't know," Rindo added. Yuma tensed, his mind putting things together.

Jin had probably been right, back when he said that the assassin had likely attacked Osamu because Yuma was close to the four-eyed boy, and was trying to lure him out. When Yuma first heard of Jin's attack, he'd thought that maybe it was the assassin trying to rile him up again, since the news of the attack had done just that. The only thing that stopped Yuma from going after his enemy was Jin's words from after Osamu's attack. He couldn't walk right into a trap and get himself killed. He had to be smart, and he had to make the assassin play his way.

However, now that Yuma knew of the fate of Jin's Side Effect, he realized Jin had more than likely not been bait. If the assassin had taken away Jin's Side Effect, then it probably knew about the older teen's abilities. The assassin likely saw Jin as a threat, and had killed two birds with one stone by taking out both a dangerous Side Effect and a powerful opponent.

"Jin-san lost his Side Effect?" Osamu asked in disbelief, his mouth hanging open. Rindo nodded. That explained the grim look on his face. The man looked to Kazama squad.

"You three will be able to return to HQ tomorrow when Jin and Tachikawa come back, but make sure you stay alert right now. Jin's Side Effect was heavily relied on by Border as a whole, and without it, we don't know when an attack may come," Rindo warned before heading to his office.

Osamu and Chika didn't move, still shocked about what they had learned. Yuma, on the other hand, was looking at the wall. The situation had gone from bad to worse very quickly, and he was running out of time. If he wanted to make the first move, he'd have to act quickly. Otherwise, it'd be the assassin coming for him, and in that scenario, Yuma had no doubt that others would be caught in the crossfire.

Without a word, Yuma returned to his room.

* * *

Osamu, Chika, Kazama, Utagawa and Kikuchihara watched Yuma go, the latter three with somewhat confused looks on their faces.

"What's with him?" Kikuchihara asked, earning a glare from Utagawa. Osamu shook his head.

"He's been a little off since this all started. I think he wants to find the person who attacked Jin and take them out himself. Kuga might not seem like the type, but he doesn't take it well when people he's close to get hurt. During the Second Invasion, on his way toward HQ to fight the Neighbor with the weird animals made of Trion around them like a shield, a C-Rank saw him with a really angry look on his face. He wasn't happy about Aftokrator attacking Mikado," the fifteen year old said.

"I hope this ends soon. Yuma-kun hasn't said a word since we went to see Jin-san after he was attacked," Chika said quietly. Osamu nodded in agreement, and Kikuchihara raised an eyebrow at the two.

"You better make sure he doesn't get himself killed, or you two are going to end up at the bottom of B-Rank. Or maybe you'll get killed too, since you're definitely too weak to defeat something that beat Jin-san," the teen said before a hand slapped itself over his mouth.

"Kikuchihara! Sorry about that, he's always really rude," Utagawa apologized, giving his team mate another glare before releasing him. Osamu waved a hand, telling him not to worry about it.

"Kikuchihara-senpai is right, but I couldn't care less right now about where we end up in the rankings. I just want to make sure Kuga doesn't get hurt," he said, Chika nodding in agreement. Utagawa nodded as well, glad that Osamu and Chika weren't taking his sharp-tongued team mate's words to heart.

"Utagawa, Kikuchihara, get back in position. We don't want anything getting in while we're wasting our time listening to Kikuchihara complain about the skill level of those two," Kazama said, gesturing to the two members of Tamakoma-2 still in the room. The younger two members of Kazama-squad nodded, moving back to their original positions for guarding the building. Osamu nodded to the stairs, and Chika followed him up to their rooms, though the two both went to Osamu's room to play a game with a deck of cards that the older of the two had bought.

* * *

In his office, Rindo stuck a cigarette between his teeth and lifted his lighter to the end, lowering it when smoke began to rise into the air. The man sighed, rubbing his forehead. The assassin was making his job far too stressful. Tamakoma agents were usually a bit more carefree than the agents of other branches, though at the moment, there was no one more tense.

Jin had lost his Side Effect and would be out of comission for at least a week. Osamu was healed from his encounter with the assassin, but he wouldn't be able to defend himself should the assassin attack Tamakoma. Chika was the same way. Tamakoma-1 wouldn't be back for another day or two, and Yuma was losing it. Rindo was sure that despite Yuma's level-headedness, it was only a matter of time before the teen would explode from pent-up rage, attacking the assassin and fighting it to the death. The way he was acting was similar to how Jin had been after the First Invasion, quiet and stuck in his own mind. Of course if Yuma fought and lost, Tachikawa and likely Tamakoma-1, or Kazama squad, would be their only defense, depending on the timing.

"Could this possibly get any worse?" Rindo wondered aloud. Just then, his phone rang, and the man quickly answered when he saw that it was Kido, hopeful that Jin might've woken again.

"Rindo, Tamakoma-1 just informed me that they found remains of a Neighbor in Shizuku. After what happened to Jin, I know you'd rather have those agents back to defend your branch, but they're staying in Shizuku for another week. The safety of the civilians there is not something Border can risk," Kido said, crushing the hope that Rindo had previously had. Tamakoma-1 wasn't coming back for another week, which left the remainder of Tamakoma nearly defenseless.

Rindo sighed, muttering an acknowledgement before pulling his phone away from his ear, though Kido's voice caused him to put it back before he was able to his the 'end call' button.

"Next time, pick up your phone," the older man said before hanging up. Rindo frowned, then noticed a notification at the top of his screen. A missed call from Reiji. No wonder Kido had been the one to inform him of Tamakoma-1's extended stay in Shizuku. Reiji must have called when he was talking to Mikumo squad, and he likely hadn't noticed.

Rindo let his phone drop onto his desk, followed by his head. The man made a mental note to never again ask if any situation could get any worse. That was the same as him saying he wanted things to get worse, especially since he worked for Border.


	26. The Power Elite returns

A/N: Its really late and I just got home half an hour ago. Turns out only half of this chapter saved, so I just had to rewrite the second half from what I could remember, how fun. I hate extra-curricular activities and I'm gonna go fall asleep on my feet now. Anyway sorry for and typos, errors OOCness and overall crappy writing. I hope you all like this chapter though it is a bit shorter than usual. At least it ended where I wanted it to :)

* * *

Two days after his attack, Jin was released from the infirmary. The teen was glad to finally be getting out, since that meant he would be able to sort the assassin business out. Even if he couldn't fight the assassin directly, he could still defend his kouhai. However, that idea was quickly crushed as Jin finished changing into some clothes Rindo had brought him, the agent exiting the restroom and tossing the bag holding his old blue robe down a garbage chute as instructed.

"You are not to, under any circumstances, use your Trigger. Even if you're in a Trion body, you'll get tired quicker and damage your real body. Your wound wasn't extremely deep, but it'll bleed if you rip your stitches open," a nurse informed with a serious glint in her eyes as she filled out some paperwork on a clipboard before tearing a sheet of paper off of a notepad and handing it to Jin, along with a small bottle of painkillers.

Jin internally cringed when he looked at the brand. It was the brand of painkillers that were too big to be swallowed, but tasted so nasty when chewed that Jin wasn't sure if he'd rather just deal with whatever his injuries dealt out. The only positive benefit was that they were quite strong and long lasting with limited side effects.

"Take two each morning, and if you need to, you may take one at night as well. Any time at least six hours after the previous morning dose and six hours before the next dose is fine," the nurse instructed before turning and leaving to tend to another patient. Jin watched the woman with raised eyebrows. She radiated intensity that made it hard to disobey her, and Jin found that he hadn't even cracked a joke when the woman was around. She reminded Jin of Kido in a way.

"You ready to go Jin?"

Said teen turned to see his rival leaning against the wall of the hallway, hands in his pockets. Jin nodded and wordlessly walked with Tachikawa out of the infirmary and to the exit of HQ.

The trip was silent until the half-way point, where Tachikawa suddenly spoke up.

"Do you think I could beat the assassin? After all, you always were ranked below me in the rank wars," he said, his tone a bit smug as he said the second half. Jin looked at Tachikawa from the corner of his eye, having been lost in thought. He'd barely caught what Tachikawa said.

"That was what, over three years ago? I would say that you could probably hold your own for awhile, but it would definitely take more power to beat it, Tachikawa-san," Jin decided. Tachikawa narrowed his eyes, catching onto what Jin was implying.

"You think it'll take another Black Trigger?" the older of the two asked. Jin didn't respond, and Tachikawa turned his head to face forward, though he kept his eyes on Jin.

 _"What are you planning, Jin?"_

-000-

Jin and Tachikawa were quick to run into Utagawa, who had spotted them on their way over. The teen came down from the roof to meet them, along with Kazama and Kikuchihara when they reached Tamakoma.

"Thanks for keeping an eye on Tamakoma for me," Jin said, giving Kazama squad his famous cheshire smile. Utagawa and Kazama nodded while Kikuchihara tilted his head to the side in slight confusion.

"Why'd you let yourself nearly get killed, Jin-san? You're supposed to be better than that," the teen said before Utagawa's hand clamped over his mouth. Jin just put his hand on the back of his head sheepishly.

"Bad timing," he said simply, his answer vague and indirect like usual. Kazama nodded and headed out of Tamakoma without a word, Utagawa following behind him along with Kikuchihara, who was trying to pry his team mate's hand off of his mouth, though he wasn't putting much effort into it.

Jin and Tachikawa watched the group leave, then their heads whipped to the side when a familiar voice called their names, a small wince registering on Jin's face from the sudden movement. The bruise on his neck from the assassin's strange head-cord was faded, but still visible. It was sore too, and it hurt when Jin turned his head too quickly.

"Rindo-san," Tachikawa greeted politely. Rindo gave the young man a nod, then gestured to the stairs.

"I'll go get Yuma and the others. I'm sure they want to see that you're alright for themselves, Jin," he said before walking off, leaving Tachikawa and Jin alone. The two stood in silence for a moment, then Jin saw his rival shift slightly before something slipped into his pocket.

Jin glanced down to see the familiar shape of his Trigger in his pocket, the exact one that the assassin had broken.

"Kinuta-san fixed it, since the damage wasn't as bad as it looked and he had some extra time on his hands. He probably would have done it later if he was busier, since Kido-san, Rindo-san and Shinoda-san decided they didn't want you to have it back yet because you'll aggravate your injuries by using it. They didn't consider the fact that the assassin may come after you again, or may come after someone near you, and without your Side Effect, you won't see it coming. As far as Kido-san and the others know, I'm holding onto your Trigger until you recover. I thought it would be best if you at least had it though. Even if you hurt yourself more, you'd be better off in a fight if you had it rather than if you didn't," Tachikawa said, his voice low and quiet so there was no chance of anyone else on the building overhearing.

Jin nodded, thankful for his rival's actions. Tachikawa would no doubt get an earful if they were found out, but the young man was right. Without a Trigger, Jin wouldn't stand a chance in a fight.

"Jin-san!" The self-proclaimed Power Elite turned to the source calling his name to see Osamu, Chika and Yuma coming down the stairs followed by Rindo. The former two had smiles on their faces, glad to see that Jin was okay. However, Yuma was not smiling. His face held no emotion except for slight relief and curiosity in his eyes, as well as an undertone of anger directed at something undeterminable.

"Hey Four-Eyes, Chika-chan, Yuma," Jin greeted, giving the three a smile, which was once again only returned by Osamu and Chika.

"Was is hard?" Yuma asked suddenly, his red eyes fixed on the brunette in front of him. Jin looked at his kouhai with very little surprise. It was mostly expected that Yuma would be interested in the facts. Jin shrugged.

"I would have been okay, but a problem arose," he explained.

"Those bad headaches," Yuma stated, letting Jin know that they knew about his defective Side Effect. The older of the two nodded.

"Exactly," he said. Yuma stared for a moment before speaking again.

"If that hadn't happened, do you think you could have won?" Jin didn't respond immediately. His face slipped into a serious expression as he debated the fight, his own skill, and the assassin's power.

"I could probably hold my own for awhile if needed, but I don't think I could win," he admitted after a stretch of silence. Yuma nodded, and an intense vibe began to radiate from his small being, filling the room with eerie tension.

"Jin, why don't you rest? You need to take it easy so you recover faster," Rindo said out of the blue, shattering the tension. Jin hesitated for a moment before nodding. His chest ached from moving, and he was really tired. The teen blamed the latter on his days in the infirmary.

Jin moved to the couch where he sat down, slouching in his seat as he let his eyes grow heavy. Mikumo squad watched him with surprise, since they weren't used to seeing Jin so tired. However, Yuma quickly pulled his eyes off of his comrade and turned to the stairs, retreating to his room without another word. The information from Jin had been useful. It gave Yuma an idea of the assassin's current abilities. Now, it was time to make a plan.

Osamu and Chika quickly followed their team mate, returning to Osamu's room to finish the movie they had started about an hour ago. Back in the living area, Tachikawa gave Rindo a nod before heading for the roof to do some surveillance. Rindo watched the young man go before retiring to his office.

Outside, Tachikawa circled the perimeter of the roof and found no threat, though he knew that could change in an instant. He also knew that just surveiling on the roof would give the assassin plenty of ways into Tamakoma. Deciding it was best to watch from inside, Tachikawa returned to the living area and sat down in a chair. He opened his mouth to ask Jin a question about Yuma, since he found it odd that the young Neighbor didn't seem to care about his comrade's improved condition. However, he closed it when his eyes landed on closed eyelids. Jin was stretched out on the couch on his side, out cold.

-000-

That night at about 11pm, when Rindo was just about to leave his office, there was a knock at the door. Rindo called for the source of the noise to come in, and the door opened to reveal Jin, who had a serious and grim look on his face. Rindo tilted his head to the side in confusion, a frown on his face.

"Did you need something?" he asked, concerned that Jin might have done something stupid and hurt himself again. However, the response he got was completely unrelated.

"I think the assassin in targeting Yuma." Rindo's eyebrows went up. That had been a theory at the beginning on the whole ordeal, but had been ruled out quickly. On the other hand, Jin looked dead serious, and Rindo didn't think it was necessary to question the agent's instincts.

"Let's talk."

* * *

A/N: Funny story, I accidentally turned in a World Trigger fanfic for an English assignment last week when I emailed the wrong link. I hope my teacher likes fanfics...


	27. Jin's theory

A/N: So I had to go read through the entire story for this chapter, and I cringed a lot. Fun times. I actually don't go back to look at what I've posted unless I'm checking for errors or looking for information. Anyway, sorry for any OOCness, errors, typos, and just crappy writing overall. I hope you all enjoy the chapter.

* * *

Jin and Rindo sat in silence, the tension in the air turning the mood to a stressful one.

"So you think the assassin is after Yuma?" Rindo asked, wanting to confirm that he'd heard the teen right earlier. Jin nodded, his eyes narrowing.

"I thought this same way when the problem started. The fact that Yuma completely lost it at HQ that day, saying 'It's here' before blacking out, had me thinking. I don't see how Yuma and the assassin aren't in some way related. If they weren't, Yuma wouldn't have reacted that way. He was raised in a world of war, not a world of fear. He doesn't faint when he's afraid, and actually, I don't know if he ever really feels much fear. If the assassin was a stranger to him, he would have taken up either an offensive of defensive position, ready to fight or run, whichever was the better choice," Jin explained, thinking back to the first day of the assassin issue, which felt like it had been years ago.

Rindo dropped his elbow on his desk and rested his chin on the heel of his palm, fingers curled over his mouth as he began to think Jin's explanation through. Yuma had only been on their side of the Gate for a few months, and the teen was anything but an open book, though they knew him pretty well. To be more accurate, his habits had come to light, though Yuma himself was still quite a mystery. To Rindo, at least. The Tamakoma Director fixed his eyes on Jin. The brunette in front of him was very similar to Yuma in many ways.

While Jin may not have been raised in a world of war, he'd spent years training as a solider and even longer dealing with a Side Effect that showed him things that would and would not come to be, both good and bad. Both teens knew the pain of loss, as well as hatred and the itch for revenge. Both suppressed that itch well, but it would always be there, worming around under their skin and pumping through their veins. If anyone could figure out Yuma, both Jin and Osamu would have the best chance, though Jin was one of the few who would be able to relate to Yuma. If Jin thought something was going on with the younger teen, chances were he was right.

"Didn't Yuma say that his episode at HQ was due to his dying body? It's plausible, given the connection between his Trion body and real body could affected due to the state he's in," Rindo pointed out. He wasn't trying to shoot Jin's idea down, but he wanted to see if Jin' s argument had enough evidence to shoot down a few counters. If that was the case, the likelihood of the brunette being right would be much higher, and if that idea was going to lead to action, it would need to be as solid as possible.

"That is a possibility, though that only furthers my suspicions of what he said being a lie. He said he didn't remember anything after when he dropped, but it wraps the situation up too conveniently. Plus, I think if the problem had been because of his dying body, something else related to his real body or his Trigger would have happened by now, some sort of malfunction. He knows that while most of us at Tamakoma are pretty good at distinguishing truth from lies, we don't know for sure. None of us have his Side Effect. When we we're questioning him after he woke up from his HQ incident, he either dodged the question or gave a simple answer, though those could have easily all been lies. You were suspicious back then, too. You even gave us the order to watch him," Jin pointed out, his last few sentences sounding almost like accusations. The teen had quite the argument, and he seemed to just be getting started.

Rindo nodded and sighed. Yuma had been a bit off that day, and while there were plenty of possible reasons behind the Neighbor's behavior, the unfavorable ones seemed to be most likely.

"He was fine when you all watched him though. No odd actions, he wasn't hyperaware, never looked over his shoulder," Rindo countered. Jin gave the man a nod.

"True, but we both know he was onto us. He's an extraordinary kid," the teen replied. Score Jin-2, Yuma-1.

"Kyosuke informed me that he overhead Yuma talking to himself in his room one night. He mentioned the majority of Tamakoma, you included. Do you think it's related?" Rindo asked. Jin frowned.

"Do you remember what he said?" the teen said, leaning forward slightly. Rindo shook his head.

"I don't remember exactly, but it was something about you and Tamakoma-1. Yuma mentioned something about you guys escaping and fighting someone," Rindo recalled, running a hand over the stubble on his chin. Jin leaned back in his chair.

"He may have been talking about us fighting the assassin. Should he not be able to defeat it, we were the best opponents at the time," the brunette guessed, his eyes shifting around the room as he thought.

Rindo kept his eyes on the teen across from him. He could almost see the gears turning in Jin's head. The teen was not one to sit around and do nothing. Jin fought when he needed to, and when he wasn't fighting, he was either behind the scenes setting things up or looking into the future and devising a plan. Now that he could not fight nor see what was coming for them, all he could do was think. Rindo was sure the Jin was probably extremely frustrated about his current situation, though the teen didn't lash out. Instead he was putting his restlessness to work.

"There was also the time when the assassin showed itself in Tamakoma. Yuma didn't look worried at all, even though he denied having ever see the assassin. The rest of us were surprised, even if the shock didn't last. I feel that Yuma should have had some sort of reaction, war-honed flight or fight instincts kicking in. He isn't stupid and he knows his strength. Unless he was sure he could beat that thing in a fight, which I don't think he was thinking that, he should have at least been a little surprised or even worried," Jin said, though by the end it seemed like he was talking aloud to himself.

"Yuma said straight to Chika that he didn't know the assassin. He's pretty close to both Chika and Osamu. Are you sure he would lie to them?" Rindo asked, pulling Jin from his thoughts. A serious look tinged with sadness formed on Jin's face.

"Haven't you ever lied to protect someone you care about? You saw how Four-Eyes and Chika-chan reacted to the assassin. If Yuma had told them that it was the assassin who meant to kill him four years ago, he would have made things worse for them. In their eyes, Yuma is almost invincible in many ways. To say that something has the ability to take Yuma down would do nothing but scare them," the teen explained. The two in the office lapsed into silence.

"Yuma was pretty tense after the assassin got into the base. It was odd that he suddenly wanted to investigate, but that doesn't automatically mean the assassin is after him. He could have just wanted to get out of the situation," Rindo said, breaking the silence after a few minutes. Jin nodded, his eyes on the floor.

Suddenly, a few moments later, the brunette's head went up, icy blue eyes holding a dangerous light.

"Did Kido-san and Tachikawa-san ever say anything about Yuma being the assassin's target? They learned about his situation awhile ago, so they know he was attacked four years ago. At least, Kido-san does. I think Tachikawa-san was leaning toward Yuma being the target after Four-Eyes was attacked. When Yuma saw what happened he just about went after the assassin. I thought it was just him being angry, but I think there's more to it. Four-Eyes isn't very strong, and he isn't too much of a threat in any way that he would need to be put out of commission. He couldn't be the target because the assassin wouldn't have left him alive in the alley. There's other possibilities, but I'm pretty sure he was just bait, and if I had to say who I think Yuma is closest to, it would definitely be Four-Eyes," Jin said, his thoughts coming together. Rindo nodded. It was a good point.

"That's true," Rindo agreed, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms.

"I know that plenty of us want to deal with the assassin and get this over with, but no one's put more work into gaining information and thinking than Yuma," Jin added. Rindo pushed his glasses up his nose.

"Do you think your attack was also bait? You and Yuma are pretty close it seems," the man pointed out. Jin shrugged.

"That could have been part of the reason, but if the assassin wanted bait, it would have chosen an easier target, like Chika, and wouldn't have bothered with my Side Effect. I think it wanted me out of the way, and the fact that attacking me would upset Yuma was probably just a bonus. Though the fact that I'm alive means I'm likely not the target either," Jin said, getting a nod from his boss. The two fell silent once more.

After almost five minutes of silence, Rindo spoke.

"Are you sure about this? If Yuma isn't the target and he's just looking to fight the assassin, we might end up encouraging him by calling him out. Right now, we can't have anyone fight. While I believe in Yuma and Tachikawa's abilities, I don't know that they would be successful if they fought the assassin themselves, being our only two available combatants who stand any chance at all. We need all the fighting power we can get to bring the assassin down without causing problems. We can't let anyone get hurt, let alone die, or someone might do something stupid," he said. Jin shook his head.

"We don't have time. I hate to say it, but I won't be in perfect shape when the time to fight comes. Plus, it might not be too much of a bad thing if we encourage Yuma," the teen said.

"Why's that? You know what this assassin can do first-hand," Rindo said. Jin nodded.

"So does Yuma, if I'm right, and he's the only one who knows what it's like to fight the assassin when it's trying to kill you is him. Also, I think you've figured out by now that Yuma is the only one we can rely on to beat that thing. Amo would destroy half the city, and while Tachikawa-san and Shinoda-san are good, I don't think a normal Trigger could beat the assassin. We need a Black Trigger," Jin said, laying his thoughts out for Rindo to see. The Tamakoma Director nodded, seeing where Jin was coming from. The teen was probably right.

Rindo was just about to speak when Jin yawned, back arching, his eye widening mid-yawn as a sharp bolt of pain shot through his chest. He clenched his jaw and hissed instinctively, his hand flying to his wound. Rindo frowned at his agent.

"You should sleep. I know that's all you've been doing the last few days, but you'll heal quicker. By the looks of it, you're nowhere near healed right now," Rindo said, his voice a bit stern. Jin sighed through his nose, though it was light enough not to aggravate his chest further. The teen stood up from his chair a bit slowly, dropping his hand back down to his side.

"Someone needs to talk to Yuma, and they need to do it soon. He's been quiet lately, and I have a feeling he'll be acting soon," Jin said. Rindo nodded, both to acknowledge Jin's statement and to dismiss the teen. Without another word, Jin left Rindo's office and walked up to his room, where he dropped down on his bed and let exhaustion wash over him, not even bothering to take off his shoes.

* * *

A/N: Just a side note, I got full credit on that fanfic I accidentally turned in :D


	28. Truth comes to light

A/N: Heeeey. Longer chapter for today. It's actually a miracle I finished writing this because I have a big project due tomorrow that still isn't done (it's close though I promise) and I've been working non-stop on it the past few days. I guess my hatred for projects reflected in this chapter's beginning because I sorta-kinda gave Jin my massive headache, though unfortunately it doesn't work that way, so that isn't gone. Pro tip, if you're ever doing a project, don't change your topic five times and finally settles on one four days before the project is due, or you'll regret it. Especially if your printer stops working the day before everything is due. Anyway, sorry for any typos, errors, OOCness and just overall crappy writing. I hope you guys like this chapter, though who am I kidding you probably just want to see Yuma fight already. Not yet, sorry. I'll be back next week with another chapter :D

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The next morning, Jin woke up a whole hour before he wanted to with a nasty headache and a feeling like needles prodding his chest. He glanced over at the clock and saw that it was 7am. Letting out a sigh, the teen slowly pushed himself upright, wincing as the pain intensified. It had been just a few days since his attack, and while he noticed his chest was healing nicely, it still wasn't even close to being fully healed. Movement hurt, and if he stretched the wrong way, he'd freeze up at the first stab of pain. To sum it all up, his injury was bothersome, and in many more ways than one.

Careful not to put stress on his stitches, Jin leaned over and grabbed his painkillers from his nightstand, along with a glass of water he kept there for swallowing them. He set the water between his knees so it wouldn't spill, then twisted the cap off of the small bottle in his hand. He shook two pills into his palm, making a face of digust before bringing his hand up and tossing them into his mouth. He then used his free hand to grab his water, lifting the glass to his lips before downing half the glass. He choked slightly, the size of the pills paired with the remaining tight feeling in his throat from the bruises around his neck making the painkillers even harder to swallow. Thankfully, the tight feeling was fading along with his bruises, so swallowing wasn't as hard as when he first woke up.

Drawing in a breath, Jin put his water back before running a hand through his sleep tousled hair. He'd forgotten about his conversation with Rindo for a minute, but as the memory came back to him, he suddenly felt the urge to go back to sleep. Talking with Yuma could go two ways. In the case that he was willing to talk, things would be simple. However, if the Neighbor continued to dodge questions and sit in his room by himself, things would be much harder. Jin knew Yuma wasn't trying to be uncooperative, he wasn't that type of person. Instead he was keeping to himself and making vague comments, working to solve the problem himself. Whether Yuma was the target or not, the teen would still more than likely end up fighting the assassin. It was simply preferred that Yuma would not keep details of the upcoming fight to himself. If he were to lose, he could at least escape alive if he had back up. It he went in by himself, the chances of that were much lower.

Sighing, Jin decided go face the problem, so he pushed his blankets away and climbed out of bed, rubbing away the blurriness that sleep had left in his eyes. The brunette quickly changed into something clean before heading to the living area to wait for both Rindo and Yuma.

-000-

Surprisingly, Rindo walked down the stairs first, the startings of dark circles under his eyes betraying any hopes he might have had about wanting to appear well-rested. The man straightened his tie and ran a hand through his hair that, despite having been combed, was quite disheveled.

"Rindo-san," Jin greeted with a nod. Rindo returned the nod and walked to the kitchen, where he went straight to the coffee maker. That had become a habit for him over the past few weeks. The man quickly started to brew a pot, and he stifled a yawn just as he pressed the start button. Jin frowned at his boss' sleepy state, though he knew that he probably didn't look great himself.

"Has Yuma come down yet?" Rindo asked, leaning back against the counter and yawning again as he waited for the coffee to brew. It would be awhile until it was done, but with the young Neighbor in question nowhere in sight, the Tamakoma Director didn't really have much else he could be doing.

Jin shook his head, glancing to that stairs before changing the topic to something else.

"How are Shiori-chan and the others? Shizuku's been pretty quiet on the news," he commented. Rindo nodded, his lips turning up into a small, tired smile.

"Something is going our way this time. They haven't encountered any Neighbors or found anymore remains of destroyed one. If things keep going this way, they'll be back in a few days as planned," he said, though Jin knew the man was leaving something off. He knew because he was thinking the same thing. ' _If only they could just come back sooner'._ If Tamakoma-1 were to return before everything went to hell in a hand basket, the situation would undoubtedly be easier to handle. Tamakoma-1 was a powerful group, one that had a good shot at overpowering the top squads of HQ if they ever really tried. If they were around, Yuma wouldn't be stuck fighting alone with only Tachikawa as back-up. The assassin may be strong, but Jin had no doubt that along with Tamakoma-1, Yuma and his Black Trigger would give the strange being a run for it's money. Unfortunately, that would not be the case. Tamakoma-1's strength was the exact reason why they were in Shizuku. Kido had entrusted the job of watching the city to a group who he knew could handle a situation, should one arise.

"That's good," Jin said simply, closing his eyes and dropping his head against the back of the couch he was seated on.

"You just don't want to miss out on all the fun, don't you?" Rindo asked teasingly, trying to lighten the mood. However, Jin could bring himself to laugh.

"I have a feeling that they're going to be the ones missing out, and we'll be having a bit too much fun," the teen said. The two fell into silence, only broken by the soft hiss of the coffee pot. The mood in the room, which had lightened slightly when Jin changed the topic of conversation to Shizuku, had shifted to be even darker than before as the two in the room thought about just how true Jin's words were.

-000-

An hour after Rindo came downstairs, Yuma finally appeared. The stairs creaked under the weight of the Neighbor, a telltale sign that Yuma was relaxed. Whenever he was tense or angry, he was silent.

Jin and Rindo, who was just finishing his second cup of coffee, looked to the stairs. They saw poofy white hair and deep ruby eyes come into view, the latter fixed on their own eyes.

"Hey Jin-san, Rindo-san," Yuma said, his voice not betraying a single thought he may have been having or emotion he may have been feeling. Jin gave the Neighbor a nod, while Rindo set his coffee down.

"Yuma, could you come with me for a few minutes? You as well, Jin," the man said, nodding his head toward his office. Jin looked to Yuma, since he already knew what this meeting would be about, and noticed that the Neighbor had tensed. However, Yuma gave no other visible reaction except for a nod before he followed Rindo to the latter's office. Jin sighed quietly through his nose, then got to his feet with care. With one last glance at Yuma, he headed to the office.

The two Border agents and the Tamakoma Director settled down into chairs in Rindo's office, taking a moment to get comfortable before speaking.

"You've been acting a bit weird since this assassin business all started, Yuma. Are you feeling okay?" Rindo asked. Yuma looked to his boss, his eyes holding a look that let Rindo know that Yuma was not clueless or stupid. He knew where this conversation was headed. Still, he did answer the question.

"I'm fine, but are you? You look tired Rindo-san," the Neighbor pointed out. The man sighed and nodded, pulling a cigarette from his pocket. He lit the small white and yellow stick, breathing in the chemicals before looking back at Yuma.

"I'm alright. I don't think you are, though. You're familiar with the assassin, aren't you? When it showed up here at Tamakoma that one night, it wasn't the first time you had seen it," Rindo said, his tone serious like he was in an important meeting with Kido, though it was also skirting the border of accusing. Yuma stared for a moment, and Rindo didn't miss the way the teen's eyes seemed to flash as he used his Side Effect.

Yuma knew Rindo wasn't lying when the man said he thought something was up, even without his Side Effect. It wouldn't hurt to double check though, so that's exactly what Yuma did, and he found that Rindo wasn't lying for sure. Yuma didn't need to look at the brunette next to him or ask any questions to know that Jin shared thoughts similar to Rindo's. Yuma wouldn't even be surprised if it was Jin who got Rindo thinking this way. He had known from the start that he could't lie forever, and even when the net of suspicion around him has loosened a bit, Yuma knew the time would come fairly quickly that the other's would figure out his link to the assassin. Now seemed to be the time that he would be found out. Whether he admitted to recognizing the assassin as the one from his past, or if he lied and said he was clueless, Rindo and Jin would still know the truth. Something was different about both Jin and Rindo from the previous few weeks, like they had sudden gotten much more confident in their theory, which could only mean they knew exactly what was going on. The fact that Jin always seemed to know what Yuma was thinking wasn't helping the Neighbor keep the assassin business more to himself, and as long as Jin had Rindo on his side, the Tamkoma Director would know what was going on inside of Yuma's head as well, and would no doubt do what he could to make Yuma talk.

Yuma sighed. He would be better off at least letting Jin and Rindo know that he trusted them, rather than making them believe he didn't.

"You're right. I saw it before then," Yuma said, his tone not changing from what it had been before. Rindo raised an eyebrow at Yuma's sudden cooperative behavior, while Jin simply continued to watch. While he'd known that Yuma would want to keep them out of the situation, he could tell from the way that Yuma had gone silent that the Neighbor knew very well that the two in the room with him were aware of the situation. If he were in Yuma's place, Jin would have resorted to at least renewing the trust between himself and his comrades rather than damaging it and still get figured out anyway. The brunette had the feeling that Yuma had acted on similar reasoning.

"When was it that you saw it before?" Rindo asked.

"Border HQ, after our Rank War," Yuma replied almost instantly. Rindo nodded, then glanced at Jin. It seemed that the teen had been right when he came to Rindo's office the previous night to explain his suspicions.

"The assassin, you saw it even before then, didn't you?" Rindo said, his words sounding less like a question and more like a statement. Yuma nodded.

"It's the assassin that attacked you when you were younger, isn't it? The one who started all 'this'?" Jin said from where he sat next to his kouhai, gesturing to Yuma's Trion body with a finger. Yuma was silent for a moment, as if he was taking one last minute to rethink what he was doing. His eyes hardened, and it seemed that he hadn't changed his mind.

"Mmhm," he hummed, nodding his head as a visible response to go with the verbal one.

"Do you think you're the one it's after?" Jin asked, getting another nod from Yuma.

"I can't think of anyone else who it could be after. On the other side, Border is just Meden. I'd be surprised if anyone had a picture or a name to give an assassin. The only people who would have any chance of being targeted by Neighbors is Tachikawa-san, Kido-san, Shinoda-san and you two, but the assassin didn't kill Jin-san when they fought. If it was any of the others, they would have been attacked and killed by now," the Neighbor explained. Rindo and Jin both stared. They had been hoping Yuma would be cooperative, and they were glad that he was, but at the same time they had held onto the sliver of a chance that Yuma wasn't the target. They had hoped it would be someone else who hadn't already lost so much, and hadn't been through more than any fifteen year old ever should. Unfortunately, Yuma was the target, and they couldn't change that. All they could do was figure out a way to eliminate the threat.

"Does the assassin have any weaknesses that you know of? Anything we can use to our advantage?" Rindo asked. Yuma shrugged.

"The first and last time I had a run in with it, I didn't stand a chance to fight, let alone find any weaknesses. Then there's the fact that if it had any weaknesses back then, it might have gotten rid of them by now. I think the best chance is to follow some advice my dad told me, 'Fight when the conditions are in your favor'. I've been thinking about ways to defeat the assassin over the past few days, but I haven't really come up with much. I have a place in mind that would work well for me though," he said. Jin leaned forward in his seat, then began coughing suddenly as he inhaled some smoke from Rindo's cigarette. The brunette struggled to cover up a wince, and Rindo looked at him apologetically before quickly putting his cigarette out. Jin took a second to catch his breath before speaking.

"Where do you have in mind?" he asked.

"I can show you later, but its an open area that's better for me since my Black Trigger is a ranged one. The assassin is more of a close-combat type, and even small people would be at a disadvantage fighting against it in a small space. I also made sure it was far enough away from civilians so that I can go a bit crazy if I need to without crashing through someone's roof," Yuma said. Rindo nodded, half in understanding and half in thanks for the Neighbor's consideration for civilians.

"We'll be relying on you to take the assassin out, but Tachikawa will be there to back you up," the man said.

"He'll be out of the fight though, since he'd get in the way of your attacks if you tried to attack at the same time, given his Trigger is Kogetsu, which is for mostly close-combat. It would probably be best to have him keep away from the fight unless you need help. The assassin probably will probably ignore him while it fights you anyway, at least as long as he stays out of the way," Jin pointed out. Yuma nodded.

"You're probably right. Tachikawa-san is good, and I'll probably need some help a few times since I don't have Replica to help me with my Trigger. Tachikawa-san would probably be more than happy to fight a Black Trigger user, too," the Neighbor pointed out. He'd heard someone talking about the Second Invasion, and they'd said that Tachikawa had been sulking a bit afterwards because he wanted to fight one of the Black Trigger users, but hadn't gotten the chance.

"You two should come up with a plan of some sort, and sooner rather than later. The assassin won't just wait for you to be ready, and it's best that you fight it where you want rather than get stuck where it wants to fight," Jin pointed out. Yuma nodded and stood, heading for the door.

"I'll go talk to Tachikawa-san before I forget," the teen said simply before walking out of the room. Jin and Rindo watched him go, a slight weight lifting off their shoulders, though a heavy burden still remained. They knew Yuma was the target and they were formulating a plan, but that was easy compared to what was coming up. After all, they still had to win the actual fight.


	29. Planning

A/N: I'm back, yaaay. When I picked up my kindle to start writing this chapter, my mind totally blanked and I though 'where the hell am I going with this'? Then again, that's just been everything from math homework to watching anime for me. I start something then forget what I was planning to do, xD this is what happens when you stay up late reading fanfiction every night and wake up at 5am. Anyway, sorry for any errors, typos, OOCness and just overall crappy writing. This chapter was supposed to have action, buuuut there were some things I forgot about so the action got pushed back (sorry). That aside, I hope you all enjoy the chapter and I'll be back next week with another, unless I freeze to death because it's literally -20000000°F outside.

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Tachikawa heard the door to the roof open and instantly stiffened. His hands went to his sheathed Kogetsu blades as his eyes closed, ears tuning into the sounds around him. As the sound of soft footsteps registered in his mind, a quiet scrape following like an echo when small feet didn't lift completely off the ground before each step, Tachikawa relaxed. The young man's hands returned to his sides and he opened his eyes. No assassin. Good.

"Tachikawa-san," said a somewhat familiar voice, one that Tachikawa hadn't ever really heard much of, though he still recognized it. The attacker turned around, his stormy gray eyes landing on ruby red ones that swam with a mixture of emotions that could only be truly described as darkness.

"Kuga," Tachikawa greeted with a nod. He watched as the small Neighbor boy got closer, finally coming to a stop a few feet away from Tachikawa, jumping up onto the edge of the roof to sit.

Tachikawa took a second to look Yuma over, memories of the Black Trigger Retrieval mission coming back to him. Jin had smoked them like a forest fire. At first, Tachikawa didn't understand why Jin would go to such great lengths for someone, a Neighbor none the less. Especially after what happened to Jin's mother and all those years of fightning Neighbors. Even as he looked at Yuma up close, Tachikawa didn't really understand, though the similarities between Yuma and Jin gave him an idea of just what Jin had been thinking.

"Jin-san and Rindo-san said I should talk to you about coming up with a strategy for fighting the assassin. Since Jin-san is hurt, it seems like you'll be my only back up," Yuma said, his tone a bit monotone like usual. Tachikawa nodded, a small frown on his face.

Tachikawa had been informed of the plans for taking out the assassin. A Black Trigger user was required, since they were up against one, and a Black Trigger to combat that would be the best both offensively and defensively. Amo had been ruled out quickly, since he would do too much damage and draw the wrong kind of attention to Border. The candidates were narrowed down again when the reminder that Fujin no longer had an official user was stated. That left Border with one choice, Yuma Kuga. Yuma was their best choice anyway, since it meant they wouldn't have to involve anyone else, and it had been Rindo and Jin's plans from pretty much the start to have Yuma fight if it came down to it. Not long ago, Tachikawa found himself reading a text from Jin, informing him that Yuma would combat the assassin using his Black Trigger, and he would be back up. Jin was also involved in the original plans that had gone through the minds of Border's Directors, but after the HQ incident, that changed.

Personally, Tachikawa wanted to fight the assassin by himself, just to see how strong it was. The situation wasn't a game though, and they couldn't gamble. The assassin was after someone, and there could even be more than one target. For him to play around could cost more than just his life.

"I think it would be best if you let the assassin focus on me. You should try to stay out of it, even if I'm getting beat. Usually its strength in numbers, but I'm used to fighting solo when I use my Black Trigger. Plus, im sure it'll ignore you unless you attack. It would be best for you to stay back and make sure the assassin doesn't go after Jin-san and the others if I get beat," Yuma said, revealing his plan. Tachikawa's frown deepened.

"How do you know who it'll go after?" he asked. Yuma was silent for a moment, no responding immediately.

"I'm the target," the Neighbor suddenly admitted, causing Tachikawa to tense. The older attacker glanced at his rival's kouhai, eyebrows raised. It had been a theory before that Yuma could be the target, that is if the assassin there at the moment was the same one that attacked him years ago.

"In that case, why'd you wait so long to say that you are?" Tachikawa asked, feeling a bit annoyed. They could have solved the issue so much earlier if they had known the target. Hell, if they had known that the assassin was around before it broke into Tamakoma, they could have taken it down before the attacks.

"I was trying to keep anyone else from getting involved. My dad always said that you can't rely on other people when you mess up. You need to solve your own problems. That backfired on me a bit though, and Osamu and Jin-san both got attacked," Yuma explained, his expression shifting to a duckface with the last sentence. Tachikawa nodded and sighed, looking out at the area surrounding Tamakoma. He hadn't seen any sign of the assassin since he began watching over the place, which was good, because the more time they had, the better.

"So you decided to just be out with it?" Tachikawa asked. If Yuma had decided to admit to being the assassin's target after the attacks of Osamu and Jin, why hadn't he done it directly after Jin's attack? Had he been hesitating? Tachikawa glanced at the teen next to him. Yuma was far too much like Jin for him to understand what was going on in the Neighbor's head.

"I was actually planning on taking the assassin out myself, sometime very soon. Turns out Jin-san found me out though, and talked to Rindo-san about it. I was just talking about it with them before I came out here. I guess nothing's really changed from before they knew though. The plan already involved you and I fighting the assassin anyway, and if I wanted to, I could sneak out and fight it myself," Yuma pointed out. Tachikawa nodded. "I don't think that would be smart though. At best, the assassin and I will be matched. I should have the upper hand if we're in a good location while fighting, since I can keep my distance, but I can't guarantee that I'll win. It'll be nice having back-up there, just so I don't have to worry about it going after anyone else if it beats me," Yuma added. Tachikawa sighed.

"I don't like the idea of hiding from the Neighbor. Are you sure I'll just get in the way?" Tachikawa asked. A fairly large part of him still wanted to fight the Black Trigger assassin if possible, even though he knew it was risky, and even a bit selfish. Even if he clashed with it for just a moment, Tachikawa was sure it would be quite a thrill. Yuma nodded.

"I don't want to accidentally hit you when I'm fighting. I won't be holding back at all when I go against the assassin, so if you were fightning it up close, there's a strong chance that I might hit you rather than the assassin, and I plan to do as much damage as I can with every attack. The longer the fight goes on, the worse it'll be. Sure, I plan on fighting on the outskirts of the city away from civilians and other Border agents, but Border will no doubt notice what's going on. Kido-san, Shinoda-san and Rindo-san want to keep the assassin a secret, which is a smart move, but they'll only be able to stall other agents for a few minutes. Even if they say I'm fighting a Black Trigger user, someone will investigate, and that would cause trouble if they managed to get involved," the small teen said.

"True. If they were willing to let more Border agents in on the assassin issue, it wouldn't just be you and I against the assassin," Tachikawa said. Yuma nodded, hopping down from the ledge.

"That's all I can think about for dicussing when it comes to planning. I'm going to go practice with my Black Trigger in the training room. I haven't used it in awhile. I recommend you practice a little too, working with something speedy. I'd say you should fight me, but one of us should be watching Tamakoma while the other is busy," Yuma reasoned. Tachikawa nodded, his eyes returning to the area around the Tamakoma base.

"I'll keep watching for awhile then," the young man said, not pulling his eyes off of the city. Yuma made no sound, but out of the corner of his eye, Tachikawa saw the teen nod before leaving. Quiet footsteps got quieter and quieter before disappearing along with the sound of the roof door being pulled shut.

Tachikawa glanced at the door Yuma had gone through, unspoken words swirling through his mind. Even if Yuma wanted him to stay out of the battle, even if it would help the Neighbor fight easier if Tachikawa didn't help, he wouldn't just stand there and let Yuma be killed, should the fight go south. Tachikawa didn't know Yuma much, but he did know Jin. He knew that Jin wanted Yuma to have a good time in Border, and he knew the older teen had a lot he was willing to give up to make that happen. Tachikawa knew that if he could, Jin would try to solve the problem himself, just like he had a few days ago. Jin had given up a lot already, including Fujin, for Yuma. Tachikawa wasn't going to let that sacrifice go to waste. He also wasn't going to let Jin down. Despite being rivals, he and Jin were good friends. That meant Tachikawa would always have Jin's back, just like Jin always did. At the moment, both of them weren't of much use, but protecting Jin's kouhai was the least Tachikawa could do, both for Border and for his friend.

-000-

Just as he said, Yuma spent the next few hours in the training room, fighting fast-moving opponents of Shiori's creation. He used his Black Trigger, doing the best he could without the aid of Replica. If he were being honest, Yuma would admit that without Replica, his chances success were low. He still had to try though. He couldn't back down from a fight just because he didn't know if he would win. Osamu had taught him that.

When Yuma finally grew tired, he switched with Tachikawa, who took some time fighting the same opponents Yuma had faced. The agent wasn't doing as well as Yuma, but Yuma had a Black Trigger. That was a large part of the reason why it was Yuma fighting the assassin. While Tachikawa fought, Yuma stood guard. No signs of the assassin appeared, which was reassuring but also very stressful. No assassin meant it wasn't coming yet, but no assassin also meant it could come at any time.

Only a few hours after starting, Tachikawa walked out of the simulation room. He didn't want to use all his energy in case the assassin showed up soon, but he had still gotten in a decent amount of practice.

Returning to the roof to tell Yuma that he could keep watch again, Tachikawa was a bit confused when he saw no one. The Neighbor was not on the roof where Tachikawa had left him. Wondering what Yuma was doing, and assuming it had to do with Rindo and Jin, Tachikawa headed toward Rindo's office. As expected, Yuma was there, along with Rindo and Jin.

"Hey, Tachikawa-san. Yuma was just saying that he wants to bring us to where he plans to fight. I think it's a good idea, especially because it will give you the chance to come up with some proper strategies, since you'll know where the fight will go down," Jin explained, filling the older attacker in. Tachikawa nodded, glancing at Rindo. The man looked at the three attackers in his office, their faces frozen in all the same expression.

"Well, you three look like you plan on doing this. I'll get Chika-chan and Mikumo. I would rather they come with us than stay here when no one else is around," the Tamakoma Branch Director said, getting up from his chair. Yuma and Jin stood as well, following their boss out. Unfortunately, none of them knew anything of what Jin's missing Side Effect would have told them of what future was lying in wait, claws out and ready to pounce on the unsuspecting Border agents.

* * *

A/N: I am 99.9% sure Jin and Tachikawa are actually good friends. Hate me if you want, but I think they are friends, so in this story, they are bros.


	30. Prolouge to war

A/N: I'll start off by saying that this wasn't even supposed to be a chapter. All of this was supposed to be in the last chapter, but then I had to add something in and it got too long, so I decided to make this one kind of like a prologue chapter for Yuma's actual fighting. I'm kind of glad it worked out this way though, because I got to throw in some sarcastic Jin and gave Osamu some time to shine, even if it's just a few lines. He's such an underappreciated character, and I hate people who hate him because he's weak. In reality, not everyone is an overpowered super-soldier, and I prefer shows/books where the character has to work from the ground up, rather than starting at the top and going to ridiculously impossible heights of strength. Okay enough ranting, sorry for any errors, OOCness, typos and just overall crappy writing. I hope you guys like this chapter, even though it's a bit short.

* * *

A few minutes after the meeting in Rindo's office came to a close, Chika, Osamu, Yuma, Jin, Rindo and Tachikawa were on their way out of Tamakoma. They began following Yuma toward the location where he planned to fight, unable to take the car. There were too many of them, and they wouldn't all fit.

The walk was silent to begin with, the only sound being the quiet tap of the footsteps of the six border agents as the walked on the pavement. Red eyes scanned the surrounding area vigilantly, keeping watch for a familiar purple flame in dark alleyays.

Behind Yuma, Tachikawa and Jin were both watching their surroundings as well, hands hovering near their pockets, ready to draw and activate their Triggers at any time. They couldn't be too safe in a situation like the one they were in. Rindo had his eyes on Chika and Osamu, who watched their Neighbor friend with a mixture of emotion. Confusion toward the situation, fear of what Yuma was soon going to do, understanding that this was something that needed to be done, trust that their friend wouldn't let them be hurt again, and hope that Yuma would not leave them behind, that he wouldn't lose.

"Rindo-san, have you talked to Kido lately about the plan to take care of the assassin?" Osamu asked, breaking the silence out of the blue. Rindo looked down at his subordinate, a bit surprised by the sudden question. Chika and Osamu weren't well informed, not aware that Yuma was the target, and it made sense that Osamu especially would want to know as much as he could. As someone who relied on creativity and knowledge to make up for his physical weaknesses, Osamu was more of a curious person. However, he hadn't shown any signs that he wanted to be involved in the current matter, likely because he thought he would just get in the way.

"I discussed it with him and Shinoda not long ago. That's when it was decided that we'd have Yuma fight, because he has a Black Trigger and far more self control than Amo," Rindo said with a nod. The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette, sticking it between his lips before pulling out a lighter and holding the flame to the end. He had been smoking more frequently lately.

Jin looked at his boss from the corner of his eye and noticed the states lines that had appeared on Rindo's face. The man was usually so carefree, but as others had noticed many times, he seemed to have aged teen years in the past few weeks alone. Jin almost opened his mouth to comment on the fact, but decided against it when he remembered that he probably didn't look too good himself, with his injuries from his attack just a few days ago. Even without factoring in the stress and exhaustion that showed on his own face, he knew he didn't look like his usual self.

About halfway through the walk, Jin's pace slowed down enough to be noticeable. He blamed his lack of physical activity over the past few days. Rindo looked back at his subordinate and sighed.

"You didn't forget to take your painkillers this morning, did you?" he asked, knowing Jin hated the medication, and was likely to decide to deal with the pain rather than choke down two or three giant, chalky, sour pills each day.

Jin put his hands up defensively, slipping a smile onto his face.

"Of course I didn't forget, Rindo-san. How could you think I'm so irresponsible?" he asked with mock hurt, drawing chuckles from the rest of the group. The one joke alone seemed to instantly lighten the dark mood that had clouded the agents for weeks, rarely fading and getting heavier by the day.

"It wouldn't surprise me if you forgot, Jin-san," Yuma said from the front of the group, his signature duckface out for all to see. Chika and Osamu both smiled at their friend, who's duckface disappeared, replaced by a smile. He was getting ready to fight someone who had basically killed him once, and who was very likely capable of doing it again. Still, there were five people behind him and even more hours away in another city, who had not abandoned him and told him to deal with the situation himself, even after they were hurt, and even after they found that it was in fact his problem. Yuma had no idea how he found such a good group of people, but he was glad he had decided to come to Mikado. No matter how the battle ended for him, he didn't think he'd have any regrets.

"I'm hurt, Yuma!" Laughter rang out again once more.

-000-

Too soon, the group of Border agents reached their destination, and the attitudes of the six grew serious. Yuma paused in the middle of the open space, tilting his head back slightly as he looked at the tall buildings in the distance. The rest of the group spread out around, surveying the area. Chika and Rindo mostly stayed in the same place, not exploring the scene very much. Tachikawa immediately began looking for a good place that would keep him close, but not close enough to get pulled into the fight involuntarily. However, the space also needed to keep him hidden from view while still allowing him to watch what went down in the open area.

"The old industrial area. Good choice," Jin commented as he looked at the buildings around them. The place was about as empty as the Forbidden Zone, the old factories having been closed years ago but still not demolished.

"Hey, Kuga, what do you plan to do? When you're fighting the assassin, I mean," Osamu asked as he stood facing one of the larger factories, which looked to have collapsed partially.

"I was just going to make it up as I go, just do what I can to win. It's what I usually do," the Neighbor admitted, adding in a little shrug. Osamu nodded, his eyes turning back to the factory, narrowed into critical slits.

"What about using this part of the factory that collapsed? It might be a little hard to get around, but you should be fine in a Trion body. Your Trigger has mostly ranged attacks, like the lead bullets you copied from your fight with Miwa-senpai and your chain, but to actually do damage you have to get close, right?" Osamu asked. Yuma stared for a second before nodding.

"Hmm. Your right. I didn't even think of that," he said, crossing his arms. Osamu pointed to the rubble.

"It looks kind of like a maze from here, probably with lots of tight corners. You could probably use that to surprise attack the assassin and land some hits, and you would have the walls around you constricting some of the assassin's movements, since its bigger. You'd have an advantage," the teen explained.

Jin chuckled, walking up behind Osamu and dropping a hand on his shoulders.

"Not bad, Four-Eyes. If Kuga uses his ranged attacks out here, then lures the assassin into the rubble, he'll have a pretty good chance of winning," the older teen added. Osamu gave the brunette a smile at the compliment. Yuma nodded.

"I think I'll try that. It'll probably make things a little harder for Tachikawa-san if he has to fight in close quarters with the assassin, but-" the Neighbor began, though he sudden cut off when a shiver went down his spine. Slowly turning his head, Yuma saw purple flames appeared from behind one of the old factories, the flames in the same direction as the eyes that he felt burning holes in his skull. The others followed his gaze, and their eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"This wasn't part of the plan, but it looks like we'll just have to go with it, Kuga," Tachikawa said, waving for the others to move away from the two Neighbors while backing up himself. Yuma narrowed his eyes at his opponent. He didn't want to fight with the others around, since it could endanger them, but the opportunity was perfect. Besides, Yuma knew Tachikawa and Jin would protect the others the best they could, even with Jin's injury. A chance like the one in front of him likely wouldn't fall into his lap. He needed to take it, despite the risk.

"Trigger, on'"

* * *

A/N: I really need to stop messing up the timeline I set up for this story...


	31. Showdown: The battle begins

A/N: For this chapter we're going to assume lead bullet only affects Trion bodies and not weapons. Not sure if that's the case, but I'm just going to have it that way so I don't have to rethink the plot of this chapter. Also, I've written very few battle scenes before, so I apologize if this one is a bit shaky. Anyway, sorry for an errors, OOCness, typos and overall crappy writing. I'll be back next week with part two of the showdown :)

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Rindo, Chika, Osamu, Jin and Tachikawa backed up until they were a safe distance away from the fight, far enough that they wouldn't get involved, but still close enough to be able to see what was happening. The area around then was open, but not exceptionally big. They could only get so far away until they ran into a pile of rubble.

"Jin," Tachikawa said, his voice low and serious. He didn't even look over at his rival, but Jin already knew exactly what the other attacker meant. The two stepped in front of Rindo, Chika and Osamu, Triggers in hand.

"Trigger, on," they said in sync, their voices a blend of serious, deep tenor and bass. With a flash of light, Trion bodies took the place of their flesh and blood ones, Kogetsu appearing at Tachikawa's waist while Jin materialized Scorpion in both hands. Tachikawa drew his blades and held them at the ready, his feet planted firmly on the ground for two reasons. First of all, he didn't know how powerful any stray attacks could be, and wouldn't be a very good guard if he got knocked down with one strike. Secondly, despite the plan, and the fact that he would be at a huge disadvantage against an experienced Black Trigger user, part of him still ached to fight the assassin. By keeping his feet rooted to the ground, he knew he wouldn't be going anywhere.

In front of the group of Border agents stood Yuma, now in his Black Trigger form. The assassin approached from the direction Yuma was facing, stopping about twenty yards away. Silence fell over everyone, the only sound being the almost mechanical sounds, like gears screaming in protest, that came from the assassin, with every heavy, deep, gasp-like breath. Nothing moved for a whole minute.

The battle started like a crack of lightning. In an instant, Yuma lunged forward, fist out as he immediately went to land a greedy blow. 'He who attacks first gains the advantage in most situations,' Yugo used to say. The assassin dodged easily and whipped out a cord in front of Yuma, which passed centimeters over his face as the white-haired teen leaned back in mid-air to avoid it.

Landing safely on the ground, Yuma spun around and instinctively brought up an arm to block the strike of a clawed hand swiping at his face, acting before his brain could even properly process what was happening. Yuma realized then that he'd have to be much faster if he wanted to do something other than block until he was so worn out that the assassin could kill him in its sleep.

 _'I need to put some distance between us,'_ he thought, and leaned his weight back on his heels in order to do so. However, the assassin knew exactly what Yuma was trying to do as it read his moves, and whipped a cord in Yuma's direction, causing him to duck. Before Yuma could regain his balance, which had been thrown off by the previous attack, the assassin's second cord swung at his ankles, smashing into the spot where the achilles would be in a flesh and blood body. The force alone was enough to smack Yuma's feet out from under him, sending the teen crashing to the ground. The assassin was on him before he even hit the dirt, attacking in quick succession, leaving Yuma no time to rest or even think.

A clawed hand swung down to where Yuma's chest was, and he rolled sharply to the left to avoid it. His instincts made a bad call though, and he had rolled right under the claws of the assassin's other hand. Yuma just barely got out of the way in time, earning a small cut on his back that leaked a tiny bit of Trion. That would be his reminder, the reminder that one bad move could cost him the battle.

As the assassin yanked its claws from the dry earth, Yuma took advantage of the short pause and jumped to his feet, crouching low on the ground before springing up and away, putting a good forty yards between himself and his opponent.

Judging by what had just happened, he would need to slow the assassin down or disarm it of some of its weapons before he could deal any real damage with his punches. It would be difficult to slow the assassin down though, since it was fast enough that it could very likely dodge any ranged attack Yuma tried. Plus, it seemed to have already caught onto him, since it had tried to keep him from moving away. For the assassin to know he wanted to do some ranged attacks was quite troublesome, and the other Neighbor would very likely try to keep the distance between them as minimal as possible.

Just as Yuma predicted, the assassin was quick to charge him, and it was just as fast as it had been previously.

"Bound," Yuma said aloud, stepping backward onto the blue seal he created and launching himself up and away once again. The assassin jumped after him, but without a boost like what Yuma had, it didn't even get close to him.

"Anchor plus Bolt, Quadra," he muttered under his breath, combining the two seals. Thick black lines darted away from the red rings that formed and hovered over his palm, launching themselves in the direction of the assassin. Unfortunately, the assassin fully dodged the attack, living up to the skill Border had thought it had. Only then did Yuma realize his mistake as he heard a shout from the ground. He winced slightly as he watched Jin and Tachikawa swinging their blades in a whirlwind blur to deflect the many lead bullets headed their way. Thankfully, the two successfully deflected every bullet. _'Sorry,'_ Yuma thought as he returned his attention to the fight just in time to avoid the assassin's cords, which whipped toward his face once more as he reached the ground.

Rindo, Chika, Osamu, Jin and Tachikawa continued watching the battle from afar.

"Yuma is struggling without Replica-sensei," Jin commented, his eyes narrowed as he watched his kouhai fight. No one commented on the breathiness of the teen's tone, or how hard he was breathing from a simple effort. He very obviously was nowhere near recovered yet. Rindo made a mental note to nearly kill Jin himself later for using a Trigger, and thought about how he would phrase his text to Shinoda and Kido about how Jin got the Trigger he wasn't even supposed to have. Judging by the fact that neither of the attackers in front of Rindo looked back at him, the man had a pretty good idea how the Scorpion trigger had found its way back into Jin's possession.

"I think you're right, Jin-san. When fighting Miwa squad, he didn't even have to go all-out and he beat both Yosuke-senpai and Miwa-senpai. Sure, they didn't have Black Triggers or as much experience as this assassin, but Kuga doesn't look like he's as organized as he was when he had Replica," Osamu added in agreement. Jin mentally slapped himself.

While Jin realized he couldn't change the past, he still wished he could have come up with a better way to end the Second Invasion. Yuma wouldn't be having such a hard time if he hadn't let Replica get taken away.

"Let's just hope he can pull through. He's good, but this assassin...it's as good as we thought," Rindo commented. No one else spoke after that, their eyes fixated on the battle in front of them.

-000-

Yuma backed away from the assassin again, but it simply followed right after him, closing the gap.

"Boost, triple." Blue light illuminated Yuma's back as his speed and strength increased, allowing him to back away faster. He managed to move faster than the assassin, but he still wasn't getting far enough away. Yuma put his arm behind himself, ready to set Bound on the ground behind him, but the assassin read his moves and lunged, clawing at his chest and reaching a cord for his neck. The claws nearly connected, and Yuma had to arch his back and forget about Bound in order to avoid them. The cord on the other hand, while it missed Yuma's neck, did catch his arm in an iron grip, causing the teen to stop abruptly and fall to the ground from the force of his sudden halt in motion.

The assassin went in for the kill, but missed the glowing blue light under Yuma.

"Bound, double." Yuma flew into the air, jumping up with only one foot. The force of his ascent was enough to tear him from the assassin's grasp, but a cut opened on his arm and began leaking Trion. Yuma let out a quite huff of annoyance as he stared down at the enemy. The assassin watched him from the ground, it's intimidating vibe daring Yuma to come down and fight.

Unfortunately for the assassin, Yuma would not be drawn in that easily. There was no ego giving Yuma the urge to fight. However, the assassin knew that Yuma wasn't fighting entirely for himself. While it didn't want to include Border agents who weren't targets in the fight, the assassin quickly turned and sped toward Rindo, Chika, Osamu, Tachikawa and Jin. It swiped out at them with its claws, and both Jin and Tachikawa blocked. A cord whipped toward Tachikawa, who didn't know what was happening until Jin's scorpion halted the cord just inches away from his head.

"Thanks, Jin," Tachikawa muttered, only being loud enough for the other to hear as he focused on the fight. Tachikawa and Jin blocked each attack, but noticed that the assassin didn't seem like it intended to kill them. It's speed, attack strength and bloodlust were significantly less than when it was fighting Yuma.

 _'Speak of the devil,'_ Jin thought when he saw the white haired Neighbor himself falling toward them from the sky, returning to the ground from his powerful Boost as he made his way to his comrades. Without hesitation, Yuma landed behind the assassin, and just barely avoided taking the brunt of a swinging cord to the chest. He was still knocked back, but little damage was done. Yuma knew instantly that his instincts had been right when he first spotted the assassin going for the others. It had been a trap. Osamu must have been rubbing off on him if he was nearly getting himself killed for others so easily.

In the few second it took Yuma to recover from the blow and get back to his feet, the assassin turned its sights from the other Border agents to him. It whipped its cords around in a wild way that looked random at first, but was actually timed to leave few openings for Yuma to defend from other attacks.

Tachikawa, Jin, Rindo, Chika and Osamu watched, unable to help, as Yuma and the assassin clashed in a flurry of motion before them. It was like two hurricanes had collided, and were pushing each other back and forth as they fought for control. Yuma was on the defense, blocking every attack he could while the assassin rained blow after blow, slash after slash on the young teen, leaving him with no time to even think about fighting back or putting distance between them.

The intense hand-to-hand fight lasted for at least thirty seconds, possibly even close to a minute. It only ended when Yuma's eyes caught a brief image of Jin and Tachikawa blocking the cords on the assassin's head when the fight got too close to them. Neither of the two looked very well, given Tachikawa had been practicing fighting Neighbors not long ago, and Jin was still injured. In fact, Jin, while he obviously was trying to hide it, seemed to be struggling with his blocking. He wouldn't last much longer on defense, and things would be hard for Tachikawa if he had to shoulder the burden alone.

Yuma himself wasn't doing great either. He hadn't done much damage to the assassin, and while he himself wasn't in too bad condition, he had quite a few small cuts that leaked Trion. He would do be overpowered at the current rate of the battle. That left him with very few options and not a lot of time.

Putting his faith in Osamu, Yuma created a seal that levitated over his palm.

"Anchor plus Bolt, double." Black bullets sped at the assassin, all missing their mark despite the close range. That only happened because the assassin backed off a bit when the seal appeared to focus on dodging, giving Yuma some space. _'Gate would have been more useful, but I don't know how to use it. Only Replica does,'_ the young Neighbor thought as he spun around, sprinting as fast as his Trion body would go toward the remains of the collapsed factory nearby that Osamu had pointed out earlier. The assassin followed after him as the onslaught of Lead Bullets ended, staying close on Yuma's tail. The other's could only watch as Yuma went for what could be his best chance, or, if he slipped up, quite the opposite.

His demise.

* * *

A/N: I put up another poll for the story, so if you have time, it would be great if you all voted. Will Yuma win the fight, or has his luck run out? Take a guess and find out as the battle continues.


	32. Showdown: A turn for the worst

A/N: Hey guys, I'm back with part II of the showdown. Unfortunately there will not be a new chapter next week. I wish I didn't have to wait, but I'll be out of town and won't have internet for a whole week. Also, I've been having problems connecting to . I don't know I'd it's just me or if it's the site, but I'll try to fix it. Anyway, sorry for any typos, errors, OOCness and just overall crappy writing. As for this chapter, my week has been full not inconveniences and my annoyance reflects in my writing, so it didn't turn out as I had hoped. All I can say is, I tried

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When Yuma reached the remains of the collapsed factory, he took the first turn he saw. He then ran down the path in front of him, skipping the next few turns before hanging a left, then turning sharply right around another corner. He continued to take turn after turn, working his way through the maze-like rubble as he avoided the debris that littered the ground. His goal was to put as much space between himself and the assassin as possible. If he wanted to stand a chance, he would need to take a moment to collect his thoughts, take stock of injuries, then think through his next move. None of that could be done with the assassin around.

After a solid two minutes of weaving through the maze, Yuma turned one last corner before dropping down against the wall, squatting with his back flattened against the cement behind him to limit the chances of the assassin seeing him, should it come nearby.

Yuma took a deep breath, though it wasn't like he really needed it. The purpose was more to calm down and focus as he willed the thrum of adrenaline-enhanced instinct under his skin to calm. It took another few breaths, but soon Yuma's mind was clear, and he looked up at the top of the collapsed walls around him.

The part of the factory that he had run through had all been outside, the young Neighbor avoiding the paths that led into the part of the factory still standing. There were to many threats poised over the cracked cement and piles of ground-up rock. The chances of being cornered were much higher in the part of the factory that was still standing, and if it wanted to, the assassin could probably find a way to bring the entire building down on Yuma, should he venture inside. Sure the tables could be turned and Yuma could lure the assassin into the building before bringing it down, but the chances were a bit too slim. There was also the fact that Osamu and the others weren't far away, and the collapsing of the factory could have a harmful affect on them, or even draw outside attention from other people in Mikado.

With the standing part of the factory as a no-go, Yuma began to think about the part he was in, the part that was already collapsed completely. There were many twists and turns, as well as piles of rubble he could hide behind to sneak-attack the assassin. In terms of options, there were many possibilities. The only problem was executing his attacks. The assassin was quick on its feet with even quicker reflexes, and despite the smaller spaces in the collapsed corridors, Yuma did not have the advantage. There wasn't a lot of room for him to dodge, and long-range attacks were out of the question unless he used Bound and went up. His best chance would be to appear and disappear. If he suddenly jumped out from one place and attacked before the assassin could react, he'd need to simply run off in another direction and get out of sight as quickly as possible before the assassin could counter attack.

Plan in mind, Yuma stood, quickly surveying his Trion body. The small cuts were bothersome, but not huge problems, not unless the fight ended up getting drawn out for a long time. If he could limit his injuries to small ones like those he had, while inflicting heavier damage on the assassin, he'd gain the upper hand. It all came down to how well he could fight in the rubble and what obstacles he ran into.

Taking one deep breath to clear his mind of all but his plan and goals, Yuma raised his hand palm-up to about waist level, beginning his attack.

"Echo."

-000-

Jin, Tachikawa, Rindo, Chika and Osamu stared at the collapsed factory that Yuma had run into just a minute ago. There was no sound, the area completely silent. Nothing was being destroyed or blown up, giving the impression that the two in the maze were seperated and not yet engaging in combat. That was a bit reliving, but at the same time in caused the tension to rise. It would be favorable for the Border agents if the fight ended soon, and with Yuma's victory. The longer the fight went on, the more dangerous things would be not just for Yuma, but for them as well. Then there was the fact that someone else might noticed the commotion and get involved. That thought in particular was on Rindo's mind. There was always a chance that, should something go wrong, HQ would use Yuma as a scapegoat. The chance increased significantly due to the fact that Yuma was the assassin's target to begin with.

The Border agents' attention was suddenly torn from the collapsed factory when Jin's Trigger deactivated abruptly and the teen fell to his knees, a pained noise escaping his clenched teeth as one hand went to the wound on his chest, his other flying up to his head.

"Jin?!" Rindo questioned, kneeling down behind his agent. Tachikawa glanced down at the two, but didn't drop his stance, remaining ready to fight at a moment's notice. Chika and Osamu stepped back to give Jin and Rindo some room, their concern showing on their faces clear as day.

"I'm fine," Jin said dismissively, though his voice was tight and a bit strained. Even without Yuma's Side Effect, they all knew he was lying.

In reality, Jin couldn't stay on his feet. He felt drained, like someone had sucked all the energy from his body. On top of that, he felt uncomfortably warm and could feel the painful pounding of a headache starting in his head, acconpanied by dizziness when he stood. There was also the fact that his chest felt like it was being clawed open all over again, and his vision blurred even when he knelt.

Rindo's brow furrowed as he observed Jin's face. The teen had his eyes squeezed shut against what was undoubtedly a headache. However, what concered him more was the hand that Jin had over the wound on his chest.

Moving around in front of Jin, Rindo grabbed the teen's wrist and pulled Jin's hand away from his chest, frowning when he saw small spots of blood on Jin's white t-shirt. Rindo sighed, letting Jin put his hand back.

"This is why we weren't going to give your Trigger back, Jin. The HQ doctors told Kido-san, Shinoda-san and I that you would get hurt more if you didn't wait to get back into fighting," the Tamakoma Director said, one hand on Jin's back as the teen unsteadily got to his feet, the dizziness fading just slightly so it was at least bearable. Rindo kept his hand on Jin's back even after they stood, not trusting that the exhausted teen's legs would hold Jin upright.

"I would say you four should get out of here, because we already all know it's a bit dangerous and Jin looks like he's about to pass out, but I'm not sure what's going on with Kuga and the assassin over there. Plus, Mikumo and Amatori can't fend off the assassin if it comes after you, and it wouldn't help Yuma if he had to protect you and fight for his life at the same time. In another situation, it would be best for you to get as far away as possible, but it's not a good idea to go without someone capable of at least holding the assassin off. I would go with you, but I can't leave Kuga by himself in case something goes wrong," Tachikawa pointed out, though he left out what the nagging little voice in the back of his head was saying, telling him to fight the assassin himself for the thrill. He already knew he wouldn't do it.

Rindo nodded.

"We'll just have to hope Yuma ends this quickly," he said as everyone turned their eyes back to the rubble that Yuma had run into when a small explosion knocked down a wall, the soundwave reaching their ears with a bang.

-000-

The sound waves spanned out around Yuma, bouncing back as they hit different objects. Metal bars, cement walls, piles of small chunks of collapsed factory, a Trion body. Yuma's eyes opened a fraction as Echo found the assassin. It wasn't far away, and was getting steadily closer by the second.

' _I guess I didn't do as good as a job at getting away as I wanted'_ Yuma thought, a small, silent sigh escaping his lips.

Without a sound, Yuma began walking back the way he came, keeping in mind the location of the assassin from when he used Echo, as well as the path it seemed to be taking. The young Neighbor decided to take a roundabout way to reach the assassin, going in a large arc the best he could as he made his way through the maze. It seemed to take forever, but he soon found himself flattened against the wall, listening to the harsh gasps of the assassin as it searched for him.

 _'Now.'_ Yuma sprang out from behind the wall, drawing his fist back before swinging it toward the assassin as he quickly as he could. Unfortunately, the assassin hadn't been focusing completely on looking for him. It's instincts were tuned in to its surroundings, and it moved to dodge as Yuma attacked. Yuma only managed to clip the assassin's side, dealing enough damage to at least offset the assassin's balance slightly, but not enough to hurt it much.

Yuma sprinted behind another wall, staying silent as he listened. He could have struck the assassin again while it was off balance, and he had even thought of doing so, but when a cord whipped over his head only a few inches away, he thought better of it and ran to safety. Clearly, he'd need to improvise, since that last encounter proved his plan wouldn't work how he thought.

Running around a few more corners, Yuma raised his hand to waist level once again.

"Ec-" The Neighbor was cut off when the wall next to him exploded, showering him in rubble while blinding his sight and hearing. The familiar sound of what resembled screaming gears barely registered in Yuma's ears, and he caught just a flash of the purple flame that shrouded the assassin. It was going to attack him, using the chalky air as cover. "Bound!" Yuma shouted, stepping back onto the seal he placed. He shot upwards and found that his theory had been right.

Trion exploded from his leg as his right foot was cut off just above the ankle. Yuma let out a 'tch' in annoyance and raised his hands out in front of himself.

"Anchor plus Bolt, Quadra!" he yelled, getting a bit worked up. Nothing was going as planned. Yuma released his building anger with the hail of black streaks that rained from the seal that hovered in front of his hands, flying down toward the assassin, who moved around to dodge.

Yuma changed his aim, following the assassin as it moved and even aiming in places he predicted the assassin was headed toward. He continued to shoot until he noticed that he was draining his Trion and not hitting a thing. Frowning, Yuma halted his attack as he dropped back toward the ground. He looked around for the assassin as he descended, but couldn't find it. The fact that the assassin was nearby was troublesome enough, but the fact that he didn't know where it was made things harder. He'd likely have little to no time to recover once he hit the ground.

Unfortunately for Yuma, he never hit the ground.

The younge Neighbor had been so absorbed in finding the assassin that he hadn't paid enough attention to where he was headed. Far too late, he found himself dropping in the worst place possible. Before Yuma could even think of a way to dodge, his Trion body landed on the outstretched claws of the assassin. The claws tore right through his chest, breaking through his back. Yuma coughed, sending Trion flying out of his mouth, as well as his wounds.

 _'Just my luck,"_ Yuma thought, grabbing the assassin's arm and pushing, prying himself from the claws. He managed to free himself just as his Black Trigger body failed, far too damaged to further sustain itself. Yuma landed in a crouch in front of the assassin, and immediately started jogging backwards.

"Boost, Double. Bound, Quadra," Yuma mumbled, boosting his Trion body with more power while laying a powerful jump down. He stepped on the seal and flew up, turning toward the clearing where his comrades were. The factory had turned into a death trap, despite Jin and Osamu's brilliant strategies. He was out of options now, and could only think of one thing to do. The problem?

He wasn't sure that he'd survive.


	33. Showdown: All or Nothing

A/N: Sorry about the hiatus last week, but I have returned, and part III of the Showdown is here. This is the finale of the Showdown, BUT it is not the end of the story. This was a pretty interesting chapter to write, and I hope all of you enjoy it. Sorry for any errors, typos, OOCness and overall crappy writing. Find out how the battle ends, or doesn't end, and I'll be back next week with the next chapter :D

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Descending to the ground gradually as he dropped toward the clearing where the fight had begun, Yuma glanced back in search of the assassin. He had hoped that it would take the long way and run back through the maze to get to the clearing. The assassin wasn't slow at all, but it would still take time for it to get through the whole thing, enough for Yuma to come up with some sort of plan.

Unfortunately, things were not going the way Yuma wanted at all that day, and his bad luck streak continued. The assassin had gotten up on top of the walls of the maze, and was moving swiftly over the rubble of the collapsed factory. Yuma wasn't good with math or calculations, but he didn't need those to know that he and the assassin would reach their shared destination at about the same time. With the uneven maze walls, the assassin faced more obstacles than Yuma, who had a clear path, but that wouldn't be much of a hindrance, and would give no more than a second or two to Yuma to get ready for the incoming attack. He had no choice but to improvise, making decisions on spot, coming up with plans on the move and hoping he didn't get himself killed before he was able to end the fight.

Yuma kept an eye on his opponent, who was not slowing their approach in the slightest. Both Yuma and the assassin were ready to settle the fight, only they had different outcomes in mind. The problem was that Yuma was at a severe disadvantage against such a strong opponent without his combat body.

The second his feet touched the ground, Yuma spun around to face the assassin, and jumped backwards just in time to avoid being sliced to ribbons by sharp claws. The assassin's claws twitched in annoyance when they completed their swing, the being obviously not happy about missing it's target.

Yuma's eyes narrowed at he watched the assassin come again, and he did his best to track its movements as accurately as possible, dodging when it went in for the kill again. He dodged up, right, left, up again and down, instinct commanding his body to move every which way just in time to avoid every strike. One wrong move would mean death, even though his body wasn't real.

Out of the corner of his eye, Yuma noticed Tachikawa step forward, bending his knees as he got ready to join in.

"Not yet, Tachikawa-san. The assassin isn't after any of you, and it likely won't attack as long as you stay out of this. Don't risk getting into a fight you may not be able to win unless you're forced into it," Yuma said, raising his voice loud enough for all his comrades to hear. He saw surprise on the faces of his team mates, while Tachikawa looked a bit unsure. Jin and Rindo shared the same knowing look, as if they had already known what the words that were coming out of Yuma's mouth would be.

It took a second, but Tachikawa slowly backed up again. He kept out both his Kogetsu blades, not daring to sheath either of them. He still didn't look very happy about the plan, partially because he didn't want Jin's kouhai to be killed when he had the power to at least try preventing it. It didn't help that the audience included Yuma's team mates, who were more innocent when it came to matters concerning death. He didn't want them to see their friend be murdered. The other reason behind Tachikawa's displeasure was that thrill-seeking side he wasn't entirely able to silence. He was aching to fight a Black Trigger user, one who intended to use their power to kill him rather than simply subdue him like Jin had during the Black Trigger Retrieval mission.

On the battlefield, Yuma continued to dodge. With each movement, he checked the space between himself and the assassin, waiting for the perfect opportunity. In reality, he would probably have to settle with 'best' rather than 'perfect'. The likelihood of him getting a golden opportunity was far too slim to be counted on.

After what felt like the millionth dodge, a claw grazed Yuma's cheek, cutting open a small wound. The familiar black gas that seeped from injuries of his civilian Trion body hissed out from his cheek, upsetting his focus. However, at the same time, Yuma noticed an opening in front of him, and it stole his attention. The assassin had slashed from it's left to its right using it's right arm, creating an unguarded space in it's front. The opportunity wasn't perfect, but Yuma wasn't sure if he'd ever get a chance as good as the one in front of him again.

"Boost, Septa!" he shouted, bending his knees before jumping forward with all the strength in his artificial legs. Yuma could see his comrades to his left just inside his range of vision as he jumped. He could see that none of them were moving, waiting to see what would happen. The assassin's claw, the one that had swung outward in its previous attack, began to move back toward Yuma, blocking his sight of those he had become friends with since coming to Japan.

Tearing his attention from them, Yuma tried not to think about the fact that the image of them standing there watching, branded into his memory, may have been his last sight of his comrades. This stupid idea of his was plain reckless, just like his idea to join the fight in Calvaria four years ago despite the warning his father gave him. The chances of it working was the same as the chances of Kitora agreeing to help train Osamu without extra convincing. Very slim.

Time seemed to move in slow motion as Yuma dove through the air, arm extended with his fist aimed at the assassin's chest, where a vital part of it's Trion system should have been located, if the being's anatomy was similar to that of a Trigger user in Border while in a Trion body.

 _'Don't fight a battle you don't think you can win.'_ Words Yugo had spoken to Yuma years ago echoed through the young Neighbor's mind. Despite knowing how risky and stupid it was, Yuma allowed his eyes to slide shut for just a moment in a mix of sorrow and guilt.

 _'I'm sorry, dad.'_ He wouldn't be listening to that advice.

Everything else happened in an instant. Yuma's fist connected with it's target, sending a shockwave through the assassin's body. The dark being jolted before freezing, neither it nor Yuma moving.

Then, Yuma sighed silently through his nose and let his head droop, chin tilting toward his chest as his eyes shut once more, now in exhaustion.

 _'I knew it.'_

-000-

Osamu hadn't been sure what to expect after Yuma and the assassin disappeared into the maze. In his mind, he visualized Yuma returning as the victor, easy and simple. However, the logical part of him knew that the assassin was too skilled for things to be that easy. For Yuma to win, he'd have to take a coupled hits, though there was also the chance that he wouldn't succeed. Osamu didn't want to think about that probability, but the tightness in his gut told him that he shouldn't set his expectations too high.

When Yuma shot into the air from in the remains of the collapsed factories, heading back to the clearing, Osamu knew not to get his hopes up. The possible reality he had dreaded showed its ugly face when the Mikumo squad captain saw the Yuma was no longer in his Black Trigger form, and the assassin was headed toward the clearing just a second behind its target.

 _'No way... Kuga lost?!'_

Osamu had felt his eyes widen and shock, and even without looking at his companions, he knew that they shared similar thoughts.

Before any of the spectators knew it, Yuma and the assassin were locked in a heated game of striking and dodging, a game that was completely one sided. Yuma was doing nothing but dodging, not returning a single attack. He couldn't.

Tachikawa stepped forward, only to be ordered back by Yuma. The young man didn't seem very happy about letting the two Neighbors duke it out, especially when the odds were stacked against Yuma, but Tachikawa seemed to settle more when Jin spoke.

"Yuma couldn't beat the assassin even with his Black Trigger, which he fought with in a real war for years. It's true that he isn't at full strength, not without Replica-sensei's help, but he isn't weak, either. If Yuma lost, you will too, Tachikawa-san. You're strong, but not Black Trigger strong, not on this level. Besides, as much as I want to do what I can to assure the victory of my kouhai, this is his fight. We've intervened too much already. This battle is more important to Yuma than any of us realize. The assassin is the reason why his life was cut short, and the reason why his father is dead. Had there been no assassin, he wouldn't have lost as much as he has. As much as I hate to say it, we need to respect his wishes and let him do this on his own," the brunette explained, sounding a bit tired and a bit concerned, though he hid it pretty well. He was feeling weary still, but that was not something that deserved attention in the current situation.

The Border agents watched as Yuma continued to dodge, both Tachikawa and Jin catching on to what Yuma was doing. They noticed that he was paying a lot of attention to the space between himself and his opponent.

Beside the two attackers, Rindo also noticed what Yuma was doing. Despite the situation, he wasn't giving up. He was looking for an opening to strike. Rindo sighed internally.

 _'Fighting until the end. He's just like his father...not to mention that Mikumo-kun has rubbed off on him a bit,'_ the man thought.

Suddenly, Yuma shouted out the name of a seal before springing forward. It was the crossroads unseen by a Side Effect-less Jin, one that would decide the futures of more than just the two fighting, or even those in the vicinity. A fist met a chest, and the two Neighbors stopped, as if they were frozen in time.

After a second, the assassin's body exploded with Trion where Yuma's fist had connected with it, before breaking down with a puff of smoke. Relief filled the Border agents who waited on the sidelines for the smoke to clear, revealing their comrade, the winner of the fight. The smoke did clear after a moment, but the agents weren't met with the sight they had expected.

Instead, the unthinkable happened. Yuma collapsed to the ground, unmoving, black smoke filling the air around him.


	34. Debts of a tie

A/N: I'M SO SORRY FOR UPDATING A DAY LATE! I forgot about the tests my school is doing this week, and I wasn't at home much yesterday. Last night when I went to post, I uploaded the document only to find that the original draft of this chapter was half the size of the new draft and so OOC I couldn't even read through it. I figured it would be better to just post a day late rather than post the crap I had. In the end, I got my five hours of hell -I mean testing- out of the way and wrote this chapter up today. Sorry for any errors, typos, OOCness and overall crappy writing. I hope you guys aren't disappointed by this chapter, and I'm sorry again for being late.

* * *

Yuma knew things wouldn't turn out well for him when he felt the assassin's claws pierce his chest. The thick, lethal weapons went right through his body, poking out just a little through his back. Given how close Yuma was to the assassin, his face just inches away from his opponent's, he hadn't even seen the claws until they were buried in his chest.

The young Neighbor had known about this possible outcome, though not exactly. To be precise, he knew that is was very likely that, should he be able to defeat the assassin, he'd sustain considerable damage to himself. It was almost amusing how he had gotten his hopes up a little, just to be taken down once again by the same thing that already took his life once before.

The assassin's Trion body exploded into smoke in front of Yuma, shrouding the teen in fog as his feet hit the ground, along with a pile of ashes that doubtlessly came from the assassin.

 _'Looks like whoever it was wanted to keep their identity a secret,"_ Yuma concluded, before a wave of dizziness pulled his attention back to himself. The smoke cleared around him, allowing him to see his comrades for just one second before his vision flickered and his legs gave out, his body collapsing into the dirt.

His mind became foggy and his senses cut in and out like a bad television signal. Yuma was able to come to the conclusion that the connection between his Trion body and his flesh-and-blood body was fading as his Trion body lost power.

 _'You spent too much Trion while fighting, and there isn't enough left to mend the injuries you have. Even with all your Trion, it would have been a close call.'_ Yuma could hear the echo of his Trion Soldier chaperone's voice in the back of his cloudy mind, informing him of the problem like always. It made Yuma want to laugh. If Replica were there, he would doubtlessly scold Yuma for being so reckless in his fighting.

Unfortunately, Yuma was unable to even get out a chuckle. His usually-light Trion body had become heavy, as if he was wearing a suit of bricks. His eyes were sliding closed, though they stopped when just a sliver of red was still showing, allowing the blinding light of the sun above to force it's way into Yuma's artificial eyes, only to be blocked out by a light gray cloud that was the vanguard of an incoming rainstorm.

Yuma heard voices, and they were very familiar, but he couldn't place them. It sounded like he had his head buried in a pillow, muffling all the sounds around him. Even the hand that landed on his shoulder, giving him the slightest of shakes, nearly went unnoticed.

As Yuma's senses continued to dull, his thoughts growing muddled to the point that he could barely think, a memory came back to him. His current state was familiar, similar to how he had felt four years ago when he 'died' the first time. The only real difference was that there wasn't really any pain, a huge contrast to the mind-numbing burn he had felt before with his severed limbs and missing eye.

With the last of his conscious thoughts, Yuma thought of his only regret. He wanted to stay with his new friends longer. He wanted to fight alongside them and challenge harder opponents, like Kazama. He wanted to fufill his promise to get Chika and Osamu on an Away mission to bring back Chika's missing brother and friend, as well as Replica. The situation was unfortunate, but Yuma couldn't complain. He'd already lived four years longer than he should have.

The last of his strength slipping from his grasp like water, Yuma hoped for the best for those he was leaving behind.

 _'Goodbye.'_

-000-

The muscles in Osamu's face had been itching to pull into a smile when Yuma landed the fatal blow on the assassin, turning the being's Trion body to smoke. The happiness was short lived though, and when Yuma dropped, Osamu's stomach went with him. A cold, heavy feeling filled the captain as his eyes widened in shock behind his glasses. He was confused and afraid at the same time at the sight of Trion, black as night, seeping into the air and blowing away in the wind.

"Kuga?" Osamu mumbled, his voice inaudible to those around him, who were also frozen where they stood. They hadn't seen Yuma get attacked, and they were all as confused as Osamu.

Jin regained his ability to move first, moving forward with heavy footsteps as he jogged over to his kouhai, kneeling down as Yuma's side. The others were quick to follow, Tachikawa dropping down next to Jin near Yuma's legs, while Chika and Osamu knelt across from Jin and Tachikawa, Rindo ending up behind the former two.

"What happened?" Rindo asked, not understanding what had happened at all. No one else really did either, but Jin had a good guess.

"The assassin must have brought up the hand it hadn't previously attack with when Yuma jumped toward him. It probably did it as a last-ditch effort. I can't imagine Yuma wouldn't have noticed, but if he noticed and attacked anyway, then this opponent was as tough as we thought," the brunette said, running a hand through his hair, which was damp with sweat.

Jin had been pushing himself the entire day, but he wasn't planning on resting, not with what was going on. He ignored the blood droplets that slipped out of his opened wound before being absorbed by his shirt, and he didn't care about the lecture he'd get from Rindo later.

"Why isn't Kuga's body healing? Whenever it gets damaged, it always fixes itself, but it isn't right now," Osamu pointed out, his voice dominated by confusion.

Jin frowned and shook Yuma's shoulder, trying to wake the teen up. He knew Yuma didn't sleep, and while he suspected that the incident from weeks ago in HQ when Yuma passed out had been stress-related, it was for that reason that Jin knew something was seriously wrong when Yuma didn't even stir.

"Yuma!" Jin called, gaining no response. "Yuma!" Jin tried again, only to get the same result. He brushed his bangs out of his face again, the stress of the situation catching up to him. He didn't know why Yuma's body wasn't fixing itself, and he didn't know how to solve the problem, nor did he have his Side Effect to help or let him know how the situation would end. He only knew that if Yuma's Trion body was as similar to a normal Trion body as he thought, the Neighbor would die when his now-damaged Trion body disappeared.

 _'Why isn't it fixing itself?'_ Jin thought to himself, his face blank despite his inner turmoil. He felt that he knew the answer to the question, but he couldn't think of it. He needed answers immediately, and while he usually had them, he didn't now that it counted. He strained his brain, trying to think of a solution, not wanting yet another person close to him to die. His mother and mentor had been enough.

Next to Jin, Tachikawa shifted his gaze between the others. Chika looked completely lost and ready to cry. She knew little about Yuma's Trion body and how it worked, but she did know that if the damaged Trion body failed, Yuma would die.

Rindo had a strained look on his face, and his glazed-over eyes were resting on Yuma's unmoving face, his eyebrows drawn together like he was recalling a memory.

Jin and Osamu on the other hand both looked to be deep in thought. The difference between the two was that the fear Osanu felt was evident on his face, while Jin's expression looked completely blank. The only thing that showed what the brunette really felt were his tired, icy blue eyes and the smallest creases on his face as he thought hard about what was going on.

Tachikawa himself only knew that Yuma was in trouble, but he had no idea how to fix the problem. In most situations that required thinking like the current one did, where he didn't know all the information, he'd ask someone to fill him in. However, the heavy, stressed, upset mood that had settled over the group made him keep his mouth shut. Even if he couldn't help, he had half the brains to not make the situation worse. He only hoped that Yuma wouldn't die, because Tachikawa himself was supposed to back the Neighbor up and prevent such an issue. The guilt he already felt gnawing at his stomach was enough, despite the fact that he had been told to keep out of the fight.

"Jin-san, Trion bodies break when the user runs out of Trion, right?" Osamu suddenly asked. Jin's head jerked up, and he stared for a moment before nodding slowly.

Osamu's face grew more determined rather than stressed, taking up the expression that always came following a brilliant idea from his bright mind.

"Chika, remember in the Second Invasion when you gave me Trion, since I wasn't powerful enough to fight our enemies?" the teen asked. Chika stared for a moment before nodding, not understanding what her friend was trying to say.

"I remember," she confirmed. Osamu nodded back.

"Do you think you can do that to Kuga? For him, it's over if he runs out of Trion, and his body isn't fixing itself like it should. He did use a his Black Trigger a bit even after losing his other Trion body, so I wonder if he didn't have enough Trion left and his body couldn't heal itself. Maybe if you give him some of your Trion, we can help him," Osamu explained quickly, a small wince creeping up on his face when a small crack appeared next to one of the holes in Yuma's chest. They were cutting it close on time.

Chika noticed the new damage as well, and was quick to agree. With just a nod of agreement, she picked Yuma's hand up off the ground, holding it in her own as she brought back the memory of giving Osamu Trion way back in the Second Invasion. She felt the same feeling now as she remembered from then, like energy was flooding from her hand to the one she was holding as green lines appeared on Yuma's hand, snaking upward before disappearing under his sleeve.

It took a few seconds before the punctures in Yuma's body started to shrink, slowly but surely, easing the tension in the air as they got smaller and smaller.

Chika continued to give Yuma her Trion until the holes closed completely, leaving familiar pale skin in their place. Chika didn't even have a chance to release Yuma's hand before ruby red eyes blinked open, white pupils studying her face.

Rindo, Osamu, Jin and even Tachikawa let out a collective sigh that contained the breaths they hadn't known they had been holding. They were all as glad as Chika to see Yuma awake, alive and energetic as always when he pushed with ease.

A smile crept on Jin's tired face, and while he dreaded the walk back to Tamakoma ahead of them, his legs already heavy like he had just run a marathon, he was ready to return home. Though thoughts of the future aside, he was proud of Osamu. The teen had saved Yuma himself, a feat Jin had tried and failed to manage in his muddled state. Despite his lack of physical power, Osamu was a valuable person with a creative mind. That was exactly what had made him stand out to Jin.

Osamu himself had a soft smile on his face, one reserved only for his close friends, one that was completely genuine and, at the moment, happier than ever before. He was happy because Yuma had survived the battle, even though it ended in a tie. Yuma was alive, and the assassin was gone.

It was finally over.

-000-

Just as darkness enveloped Yuma, he suddenly felt something tug at his conscious. A wave of energy hit him, followed by a steady flow. He instantly began to feel lighter, his dulled senses returning slowly at first, but then exponentially as he felt more and more power seep into his body. Soon, he could feel familiar, warm hands on one of his own, the warmth coming from the same place as the power he felt rushing into his body. He didn't even need to see who was helping him to know the person's identity, but he still opened his eyes anyway.

Chika was staring down at him with surprise on her face, along with some relief and happiness as she noticed that Yuma was okay. Yuma gave her a small smile, the ends of his lips turning up in thanks, but he knew that while Chika wasn't stupid, she also wasn't the mastermind behind his 'resurrection'. All he had to do was follow Chika's line of vision as she glanced to the side in order to find the man behind the plan.

Yuma's eyes landed on the familiar leaf-green orbs that belonged to his first Japanese friend and his smile widened. The Neighbor planted his hands on the ground before pushing himself upright without difficulty, his strength totally renewed.

"Thanks, partner.'

* * *

A/N: **Important!** The next chapter will be next week, and it's the last one *sobbing* It's an Epilogue, and while I know many people don't like those, I recommend reading it, because I will be tying up loose ends, including Tamakoma-1 who I abandoned in Shizuku and totally forgot about, and at the end I'll put in an authors note regarding the original plans for the end of the story, in case anyone is interested in seeing how different things ended up.


	35. Epilogue: Free

A/N: It's hard to believe that this is the end. I wish I could keep writing this multichapter forever, but clearly that is impossible. Still, still it's been around 8 1/2 months since I started this, and it'll be weird to not be working on it any more. I have hopes for starting a new multichapter at some point, but it'll definitely be awhile, at least a month, before that will happen. That is, if I stop being a lazy procrastinator and actually write. Anyway, sorry for any errors, typos, OOCness and just overall crappy writing. This chapter is so cheesy I'm cringing, but I'm both a sadist and a sucker for fluff, so this is what happens. Plus I had a lot of lose ends I forgot about, including Yotaro and Tamakoma-1. Enjoy the long final chapter of Black Trigger! *sobbing nonstop*

 **BIG THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR READING. YOU ARE ALL GREAT!**

* * *

Yuma cracked an eye open when he heard the distant sound of a door opening. His gaze shifted from the anime on the television he had been listening to, to the hallway door, which swung open to reveal Jin. The brunette swept the room with his gaze until his eyes found Yuma, and a smile tugged at the edge of his lips.

"Hey, Yuma. Are you enjoying your time off?" Jin asked, walking over to the couch and dropping down when Yuma pulled his legs up to his chest so he was no longer laying down. The elite agent glanced at the television, huffing out a breath of laughter when he noticed that 'Fullmetal Alchemist' was on, one of Konami's favorites. Given the strawberry blond herself wasn't there, Jin guessed that she had probably wrangled Yuma into watching it and gotten him interested.

"It's nice to not have an assassin tailing me, attacking people when they get in the way as it tries to kill me," Yuma replied, his voice nonchalant as if assassins were something he was very used to. At this point though, those at Tamakoma were well-acquainted with the idea of an assassin, after weeks of dealing with one.

Mikumo squad had been given a few days off of defense duty, and the Rank Wars were further delayed as the Border higher-ups worked to close up the assassin case. All that was left was paperwork really, as well as a few mandatory check-ups in the infirmary for Jin. Shinoda, Kido and Rindo had decided to take Jin's Trigger, again, and ban him from all active work, again, until he was healed, unless there was some sort of emergency that required his help. The check-ups had been Shinoda's idea, since the man thought it would be good to make sure Jin's wound healed correctly. Plus, the doctors in the infirmary drew blood every time Jin went it, searching for remnants of the drug that had caused the disappearance of his Side Effect.

"Oh, I forgot to ask. Jin-san, did they say anything about your Side Effect?" Yuma asked. Jin had just returned from the infirmary in Border, where he had gone to see how much longer he'd need his stitches. The time had been prolonged due to the fact that he ripped a few while helping Tachikawa fend of stray attacks just a few days ago in the showdown between Yuma and the assassin.

"Yeah, actually. Kinuta-san came in, and apparently he'd been working on the drug to see if they could figure it out. Turns out Kido-san really wants my Side Effect back. Kinuta-San compared the blood sample that was taken when I first got brought in to the infirmary to the one that was taken today, and found that there's only a trace left. On my way in, I also saw a flash of one of the doctors' futures. I got a small headache from it, and it made me a little dizzy, but Kinuta-san is pretty sure the effect of the drug is only temporary. He thinks I should have my Side Effect back and fully functioning within the next week or two," Jin explained. Yuma nodded.

"Seems like wishful thinking, but Kinuta-san seems like he usually knows what he's doing," the young Neighbor pointed out. He then glanced around the room, as if he was searching for something.

"Where's Rindo-san? I thought he'd come back with you," Yuma asked, a bit confused. Jin cringed, his hand going to the back of his head to comb through his hair uneasily.

"He's still at HQ with Kido-san and Shinoda-san, working on the paperwork. It's probably best that he has some time to simmer down, the other two as well," the Power Elite explained.

Yuma fixed the brunette with a curious expression. Jin's words had caught his attention.

"Simmer down? Did something happen?" he asked. Jin stiffened, then sighed.

"Rindo-san has been busy with paperwork lately, but today he gave me quite an earful about how reckless it was to use my Trigger when I was still healing. He admitted that it helped Tachikawa, and someone could have gotten hurt if I didn't do it, but given the fact that I wasn't supposed to even have my Trigger, he got a bit worked up. He wasn't exactly angry, Rindo-san isn't that type. He's more of the father type with us, and his tone was more of the 'lecturing your reckless son who could have horribly injured himself' tone, rather than the 'what the hell were you thinking you idiotic subordinate' tone. That was more Shinoda-san and Kido-san when they were scolding Tachikawa-san. Actually, I wonder if Tachikawa-san even survived," Jin questioned. Yuma raised an eyebrow.

"Why were they so upset with Tachikawa-san? He stuck to the plan," Yuma said, trying to think of what the older attacker could have done wrong. Jin shook his head.

"It has nothing to do with what he did while you were fighting. They were upset because he stole my Trigger from Kido-san's office and gave it to me when I wasn't supposed to have it. His intentions were good though, or at least what he said to me wasn't harmful. He thought it would be better if I had my Trigger and a fighting chance rather than being stuck as a crippled sitting duck. You know, come to think of it, Kido-san and Shinoda-san were also a bit mad about him not helping you fight, even though you told him not to, but it was mostly the Trigger issue," the brunette explained. Yuma nodded.

"Was he still getting scolded when you left?" the younger teen asked. Jin winced.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that. If extremely loud shouting is scolding, then he was getting scolded," he reasoned.

"Wow, do they value you that much? Not that you're a bad at fighting Neighbors or anything," Yuma asked, a bit surprised that Tachikawa was in so much trouble over such a simple thing. He knew it was probably something bigger than he'd understand, like why violence was illegal in Japan, but he was a bit curious.

"It's more my Side Effect that they value. Anyone with foresight would be someone Border would want to keep alive. Though I know that below his anger and cold-heartedness, Kido-san cares about each and every one of his agents," Jin said, his tone light at the end like he was telling a joke. Yuma's Side Effect told him that he was.

The young Neighbor chuckled before returning his attention to the anime.

Jin smiled at his junior before glancing at the television. The anime wasn't a bad one, and he didn't have anything to do, so he settled on watching it. He found it funny how similar Edward Elric was to Kazama. Strong, short soldiers.

-000-

A little while later, just as the episode of 'Fullmetal Alchemist' ended, the door to Tamakoma opened once again. Jin and Yuma looked up with twin expressions of slight curiosity as Osamu and Chika walked in, followed by Rindo, who looked a bit weary. The man's hair was unkempt, as if a stressed hand had run through it a dozen times, and his suit was wrinkled. His tie was also missing.

"Oh, you're back," Yuma commented as Jin discreetly averted his eyes from his boss to his two kouhai in the doorway.

Rindo gave a wave while Osamu and Chika wandered up to their team mate, peeking at the television to see what he was watching and catching the end theme of the anime. Rindo glanced over at the television as well, sighing when he heard the familiar theme, but his lips were pulled into a small smile and the creases of tension in his face were starting to relax.

"Ah, that show. Konami must have gotten you into it, Yuma," Rindo assumed, hanging up his coat on a peg near the door. Yuma nodded, watching his boss move around the room, dropping a few things here and there as he put stuff away.

Jin and Tachikawa hadn't been the only ones to receive lectures. Yuma had also been pulled aside, and Rindo had spoken to him briefly.

 _"It's good that you took care of the assassin, but that was risky. I ask that you try to avoid doing something like that in the future. I know Border isn't exactly the safest line of work, especially because you're a Neighbor, but I prefer not to lose my agents. Jin's incident and Osamu's were two scares too many already. Plus, while it may not seem like it, Kido does care for you a bit. He dislikes the fact that you are a Neighbor, but you're Yugo's son, and I know he can't bring himself to truly hate the son of his old friend. Shinoda got a bit worried when he learned about your near-death in the fight, as well,"_ Rindo had said to him. Yuma hadn't known if he should be happy or confused over the fact that Kido didn't hate him. The man wasn't rude to him, but he wasn't particularly nice. Maybe that was some weird Japanese thing.

Outside of Tamakoma, a truck was approaching, it's engine loud enough to be heard from inside. Rindo glanced out the window with raised eyebrows.

"Well, speak of the devil," he murmured, reaching up to adjust his glasses. The room fell into silence, broken only by the sound of the truck outside and a distinct, high-pitched voice yelling something about homicide.

Just seconds after the engine silenced, Konami burst in the door, her hair fanning out behind her as air rushed past her, which only made the Attacker look more intimidating when paired with the enraged look on her face.

"JIN! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, FIGHTING THE ASSASSIN ALL BY YOURSELF WITH NO ONE AROUND, WHEN NO ONE KNEW WHERE YOU WERE? AND WITH A NORMAL TRIGGER! WITH YOUR SIDE EFFECT OUT OF COMMISSION! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" the strawberry blond raged, stomping toward Jin with her hands up, fingers bent like claws as she got ready to strange the brunette.

For the first time, Yuma saw actual fear on Jin's face, as if the other agent actually thought Konami was going to kill him. Knowing Konami, she probably planned to. However, Jin's savior appeared in time, and Kyosuke pulled Konami away by the shoulders.

"Given the fact that the assassin took away his Side Effect, Jin-san probably didn't have much of a choice. Even if he had tried to get away, the assassin probably would have gone after him," Kyosuke reasoned. Konami's mind registered his words, then she blinked, her whole expression changing in that instant from anger to something similar to worry, but not quite that.

"Your Side Effect! Wait, is it still gone? It's no gone permanently, right? RIGHT?!" the girl screamed, loud as usual. Jin cringed when Konami's voice squeaked as she yelled, but he managed to shake his head.

"Kinuta-san and the doctors in the infirmary agree that my Side Effect should be back within the next week or two. I even saw part of someone's future this morning, but it gave me a headache and made me dizzy. It'll be fine though," Jin explained, repeating almost exactly what he had said to Yuma earlier.

"That's good," Reiji said from where he suddenly appeared in the doorway. Shiori poked her head out from behind him, giving a peace sign to the other agents in greeting. Reiji quickly side stepped so he was out of the way, allowing the Operator to come into the room.

"So you're Side Effect really is going to come back?" Osamu asked from next to Rindo. He hadn't spoken since he arrived, but it was clear that he had been listening intently to the others. Jin gave the four-eyed teen a smile and a nod, earning a relieved smile in return.

The Tamakoma-1 team began to bring their bags back into Tamakoma, having brought a few things with them due to their long stay. While their time in Shizuku had lasted much longer than the few days originally intended, they hadn't had much of a problem with wearing the same clothes twice. Only Konami had protested, but after Kyosuke told her that many people in Shizuku had head lice, and that the lice were drawn to clean clothes, she had no more complaints.

It was just as everyone began settling in, Yuma, Osamu, Chika and Jin sitting on the couch, watching the episode of 'Fairy Tail' that had just come on, that Konami began ranting again. Tamakoma-1 had been unaware of the details of the showdown between Yuma and the assassin, and had only been told that Yuma was alive and the assassin was no longer an issue. As Mikumo squad and Jin began watching the anime on television, Rindo explained to those who had been in Shizuku what had happened. When the group heard about Yuma's near-death, Konami was on the Neighbor in an instant.

"YOU ARE JIN ARE SO ALIKE! BOTH OF YOU ALWAYS NEARLY GETTING KILLED! WHAT WERE YOU TRYING TO DO, FIGHTING THAT THING BY ITSELF? YOU SHOULD HAVE HAD TACHIKAWA-SAN HELP YOU! WHAT IF YOU DIED!?" she roared, her arm locked around Yuma's neck as her free hand formed a fist and dug into Yuma's skull.

Yuma allowed Konami to continue messing up his hair and digging her knuckle into his skull because he felt that his mentor deserved the outlet, plus, it didn't hurt.

"I wouldn't have died," he said simply, his voice a bit monotone like he was stating a fact. Maybe he was. Konami huffed.

"I swear, you and Jin...you both think you're invincible," she muttered, her tone rough. Her face was twisted into an annoyed expression as she tiredly plopped down on the arm of the couch next to Yuma, not yet releasing him from her headlock. However, he arm had loosened significantly, and everyone in the tell that, despite her expression, she was just glad that her student was safe.

Kyosuke raised an eyebrow at his senpai before walking up to Osamu.

"I heard you came up with the master plan that saved Yuma," he stated. Osamu nodded, his gaze shifting to the small girl next to him on the couch.

"That never would have worked if Chika weren't there though," he pointed out, causing the young sniper to turn slightly pink.

"It's like I said when you told me you wanted to be a Shooter. You're weak, not stupid," Kyosuke recounted, his golden eyes locked on Osamu. The captain decided to simply take the compliment and shut up before Yuma started reminding him of good things he'd done again.

Next to Osamu, Chika jumped slightly when a large shadow suddenly loomed over her. She relaxed though when she looked up and saw that it was her mentor.

"Sounds like you did good, Amatori," he pointed out. Chika shook her head, eyes shifting to the ground.

"All I could do was use my Trion. Yuma-kun, Osamu-kun, Jin-san and Tachikawa-san did all the work," she explained, wishing she could have aided in the fight like Osamu, Jin and Tachikawa.

A large hand landed on Chika's head, and she looked up at Reiji's face in confusion.

"Many people would completely freeze up in the situation you were in, but you did what you were told. Plus, you didn't run away and abandon your comrades. Those are good skills to have," Reiji told her, getting a nod in response.

"Yes! It's so great that you were able to help them out, Chika-chan. Without you, Yuma would have surely died!" Shiori piped up, hee face a her usual bubbly happiness and a tinge of sadness. Chika smiled at the Operator, but her smile turned to confusion once again when the doorbell rang, causing everyone to turn to the door. The sound of approaching footsteps was odd, a mixture of loud, slow steps along with faster, lighter steps.

The footsteps abruptly stopped, then the door opened, and a spiky head donning a yellow headband poked in. Yosuke's eyes widened and his lips twisted into a smile when he saw Rindo.

"Rindo-san! I know you said you would come by later, after Tamakoma-1 got back and was settled in again, but the brat didn't want to wait," the teen said just as a brown lump waddled into the room. On its back was a boy wearing a familiar white helmet, and when his eyes landed on his father, he lifted a finger and pointed at the man.

"To dad, Raijinmaru!" he ordered. The capybara huffed, then wandered over to the Tamakoma Branch Director. Rindo smiled and bent over, picking his son up off of his pet and balancing him on his hip, pulling the boy into the best side hug he could manage in their current position.

"Hey, Yotaro! I hope you didn't cause Yosuke any trouble?" he questioned, glancing at the teen in the doorway.

"I'm not sure how he survives without me," Yotaro said as Yosuke gave the man a thumbs up to signal no trouble, then frowned when his phone vibrated in his pocket. He plucked it out and smiled as he read over the text.

"I hate to leave so quickly, but Shuji fell asleep at his desk again, Narasaka and our Operator aren't at HQ today, and Kodera is too afraid he'll be killed if he tries to wake Shuji up himself," Yosuke said with a chuckle, typing a text in response before stepping toward the door. He froze mid-step though and turned around suddenly, his eyes locking on Yuma's. "You still owe me a Rank War, shrimp," he reminded before walking out, closing the door behind him. Yuma received a few glances from the other Tamakoma agents, but didn't say anything.

Suddenly, Rindo spoke up.

"Well then. It's your turn to cook, Reiji. I made sure to buy extra meat when I stopped at the store on my way back from HQ," the man said, directing his attention to the red haired man on the other side of the room. Reiji nodded, a glint in his eyes as his mind registered the words 'extra meat', before he headed to the kitchen. Shiori waved for Chika to get up, and the two dark haired teens followed Reiji to the kitchen to help with dinner, given it was starting to get late and they didn't have much else to do.

"Karasuma-senpai, do you think you could help me train a little bit? You don't have to if you're tired from your work in Shizuku," Osamu asked, tacking on the last part quickly when he remembered where his mentor had just gone. Kyosuke shook his head.

"It's fine. I have time," he said, earning a small smile from Osamu, who jumped up from the couch and followed the older teen out of the room.

Yuma looked to Konami hopefully, his eyebrows raised. He enjoyed having time off from working after all he'd been doing during the assassin issue, but had been itching for a fight for a while now, no longer able to stand lounging around all day with nothing to do.

Konami sighed, releasing her kouhai before getting to her feet.

"Alright, ten rounds, but you have to let me change my clothes first. Here, the lice won't get me," she said, walking off to her room.

Yuma got to his feet, staring in confusion for a moment before coming to the conclusion that Kyosuke had likely tricked Konami or something like that so she wouldn't throw a fit about whatever problem it was that they had encountered, something he'd seen Osamu's mentor do before. The boy then shrugged and hurried off to the virtual training rooms, already ready to fight. He had the feeling he'd do good.

-000-

Later that night, after Osamu and Chika had gone home, when it was pitch black outside other than the pale light cast from the moon, Yuma stepped out onto the roof of Tamakoma. He walked to the edge, jumping up on it and settling in with his legs dangling over the water far below. A sense of ease washed over him, relieving weeks of built up tension. He hadn't truly relaxed even after defeating the assassin. He guessed that the presence of Tamakoma-1 and the fact that Yotaro was back was enough to finally get every part of his brain to understand that it really was over.

Behind Yuma, the door to the roof swung open again, and the Neighbor knew who it was without even turning around.

"You should be sleeping, Jin-san. It'll heal your injuries quicker if you rest more," Yuma pointed out, not pulling his gaze from the water. A soft chuckle filled the air behind him as Jin neared, dropping down on the ledge next to Yuma before carelessly swinging his legs over the edge, as if he wasn't afraid of accidentally falling into the river. Chances were he wasn't.

"It's nice to hear you sounding normal again and not all tensed up like you have been," Jin commented, his eyes on his kouhai. Yuma shrugged simply in response.

"There's no reason to be tense anymore." Jin nodded in agreement.

"You sounded pretty convinced earlier when you told Konami you wouldn't have died fighting the assassin, even if things had turned out differently," the brunette pointed out, though his tone held no trace of accusation. Yuma couldn't help but smile as his mind wandered back to what he had been thinking while talking to his mentor.

"I wouldn't have, though. Not as long as Osamu was there. He's a demon of helpfulness when it comes to others, but he's a daredevil when it comes to himself. I know that, had things gone a lot worse, he would have still helped me, even if there was a large chance of him getting killed. While I thought I actually was gone to die out there for a moment, I wasn't surprised when I was suddenly okay. Osamu thinks things through, then finds a solution, though his solutions don't always help him very much. Still, that's just who he is," the Neighbor explained, memories of when marmods attacked their school coming back to him. Jin smiled.

"Our Four-Eyes is an odd one, that's for sure. Many people underestimate him because he's not an amazingly talented combatant, but they don't see his promise as a tactition. Brute strength doesn't solve everything," the elite commented wisely.

Yuma pulled his eyes off the water, looking up at Jin with slight curiosity. The brunette had his eyes fixed on the moon, and his icy blue irises were almost white from the light that reflected off of them.

"Did you know that Four-Eyes ran into Kido-san after the Second Invasion? Kido-san asked him if he was upset that Border was going to use him as a scapegoat, but apparently Four-Eyes told him he wasn't really bothered by it," Jin explained. "However, he did say that he'd never forgive Border if we ever used either you or Chika-chan like that," he added. Yuma's eyes widened slightly, but the smile on his face showed that he wasn't very surprised.

"Typical Osamu," he said, shifting his own gaze to the moon.

Yuma was glad to be alive, because he could still fight and do Rank Wars with his friends. However, he was also very aware of the fact that the day would come when his real body would die. No one would be able to stop that, or at least, that is what Yuma used to think. He had the sneaking suspicion that, with Osamu on his side, things might not turn out how he had thought they would before he got to know the other teen.

As the moon illuminated bloody diamonds in his ruby red eyes, Yuma felt a twinge of excitement for whatever was next to come. Even if it was his problem, he wouldn't take all the weight on himself again like he had with the assassin. That's because he had come to realize something very important that he had forgotten after the assassin showed up, dragging him back to a time when it was him against the world.

He was no longer alone.

* * *

A/N: Was that a hopelessly cheesy enough end? I hope so *trying to mask my sobs with sarcasm* As I promised in the last chapter, I'll explain the original endings for Black Trigger from before I settled on the one you all read.

1)Black Trigger originally was going to have 5 endings. Yuma died in all of them, but the details were different. In one of the five, Yuma's Black Trigger ended up with Osamu, since only he and Jin could activate it, and Yuma used what remained of his life to create another Black Trigger as a 'replacement' for the Fujin Jin gave up, making Jin S-Rank once again. I lost the paper containing the five endings, but I do remember that Tamakoma-1 originally stayed, and in one case, after Yuma died, they defeated the assassin alongside Jin, who originally was never going to fully lose his Side Effect, rather it would have been like a signal that kept cutting in an out randomly. Jin was also originally not going to be injured, and no one in HQ was originally going to play a part in dealing with the assassin, or even know about the issue.

2)The ending used in Black Trigger was a bit last minute, one I made up as I went until finally got it planned out around chapter 25-30. The reason this ending was chosen is because Chika and Osamu don't have as much time to shine as Yuma and Jin, especially Osamu, thus Jin's injury and Osamu saving Yuma's life.

3)The reason why Yotaro and Tamakoma-1, along with Shiori, were sent away, is because I had too many characters to keep track of, and Tamakoma-1 would not be able to be involved in the fight, or it would have made things too easy for Border. It seemed like sending away the five-year old and the powerful senpai was the best option.

That's about it for anyone who might have been curious about how much the plans for this story changed. Thanks again for reading, and I hope everyone liked it!


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